In 2025, fire departments serving Cicero responded to 37 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 68% of all calls.
May peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
241 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $40K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 57 | — | |
| 2022 | 66 | +15.8% | |
| 2023 | 40 | -39.4% | |
| 2024 | 41 | +2.5% | |
| 2025 | 37 | -9.8% |
For the 4 building fires Cicero departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 43 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Outside area, other | 9 | 20.9% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 7 | 16.3% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 14.0% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 9 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 16.3% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Cicero mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 32.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 11.6% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 16.3% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Cicero sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 2 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 35 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Recreation and ceremony | 20 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 15 | 43.3 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Cicero. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Cicero.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.