In 2025, fire departments serving Coatesville responded to 48 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $140K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 52% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
275 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 40 | — | |
| 2022 | 34 | -15.0% | |
| 2023 | 65 | +91.2% | |
| 2024 | 88 | +35.4% | |
| 2025 | 48 | -45.5% |
For the 9 building fires Coatesville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 59 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 | Undetermined | 20 | 33.9% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 8 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Other | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Corridor, mall | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 18.6% |
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 Coatesville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 31 | 52.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 6 | 10.2% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 5 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Match | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 8.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Coatesville departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $140,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $12,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,500 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $2,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $500 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Coatesville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,548 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,549 | 40.5 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 165 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 156 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 43.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 43.4 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 47 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 | 24.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Recreation and ceremony | 37 | 48.6 mi | |
| 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 34 | 49.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 30 | 47.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Smoking | 23 | 48.7 mi | |
| 1998 | Debris and open burning | 22 | 41.5 mi |
Top 3 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 Coatesville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.