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2025 Annual Fire Report

Fires in Cudahy, California

In 2025, fire departments serving Cudahy responded to 40 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K building blaze. Here's the full picture.

Updated Sep 27, 2026 Grade A+ Peak yr 2021 Los Angeles County 22,657 residents 0 reporting departments 286 5-yr
Total incidents
40
-9.1% vs 2024
Building fires
3
Residential 67% Other 33%
Property loss
$108K
$96K structure · $12K contents
Deaths & injuries
0 / 0
0 civilian deaths · 0 civ injuries · 0 firefighter injuries
01 The mix

What kinds of fires happen here?

Outside rubbish fire, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 73% of all calls.

40
Total Incidents
Outside rubbish fire, other 14 35.0%
Trash or rubbish fire, contained 6 15.0%
Passenger vehicle fire 4 10.0%
Building fires 3 7.5%
Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire 2 5.0%
All other categories 11 27.5%
02 Seasonality

When do fires happen?

Jun peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.

Jan 4
Feb 3
Mar 2
Apr 5
May 4
Jun 7
Jul 2
Aug 6
Sep 1
Oct 4
Nov 1
Dec 1
Fewer
More
2b Five-year trend

Year over year in Cudahy

286 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $1.1M cumulative property loss.

YearIncidentsYoY 
2021 82 —
2022 48 -41.5%
2023 72 +50.0%
2024 44 -38.9%
2025 40 -9.1%
03 Cause of ignition

What sparks building fires?

For the 3 building fires Cudahy departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.

Unintentional
100%
9
Cause undetermined
0%
0
Intentional / arson
0%
0
Equipment / heat source failure
0%
0
Under investigation
0%
0
Act of nature (lightning)
0%
0
3b Where fires start

Where do fires start in Cudahy?

NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 65 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 originCountShare 
1 Other 7 10.8%
2 Engine area, running gear, wheel area 6 9.2%
3 Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison 5 7.7%
4 Vehicle area, other 5 7.7%
5 Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge 4 6.2%
6 Storage area, other 3 4.6%
7 Vehicle storage area; garage, carport 3 4.6%
8 Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles 3 4.6%
9 Outside area, other 3 4.6%
10 Vacant structural area 3 4.6%
11 All other areas 23 35.4%
3c What ignited it

What actually ignited the fire?

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 Cudahy mix.

#Heat sourceCountShare 
1 Heat source: other 22 33.8%
2 Heat from powered equipment, other 10 15.4%
3 Undetermined 8 12.3%
4 Hot or smoldering object, other 5 7.7%
5 Arcing 4 6.2%
6 Heat from other open flame or smoking materials 4 6.2%
7 Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment 2 3.1%
8 Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment 2 3.1%
9 Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions 2 3.1%
10 Hot ember or ash 1 1.5%
11 All other sources 5 7.7%
04 The biggest fires

6 fires · $96K in losses

Largest single-incident property losses reported by Cudahy departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.

# Property loss Type Severity Status
1 $50,000 Building fires Significant Investigated
2 $30,000 Building fires Significant Investigated
3 $10,000 Passenger vehicle fire Significant Investigated
4 $5,000 Passenger vehicle fire Significant Investigated
5 $500 Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire Significant Investigated
6 $500 Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire Significant Investigated
05 How Cudahy compares

Cudahy vs California vs the nation

Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Cudahy sits below the national average for incidents per resident.

1.77
Incidents per 1,000 residents
Cudahy
1.77
CA avg
5.32
US avg
7.48
0.13
Building fires per 1,000 residents
Cudahy
0.13
CA avg
0.32
US avg
0.85
0
Civilian fire deaths per million
Cudahy
0
CA avg
2.9
US avg
5.9
5c Wildfires nearby

Wildfires within 50 mi of Cudahy

Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,128,144 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.

50 mi radius
YearCauseAcresDistance 
2009 Arson/incendiarism 160,371 19.3 mi
2020 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 115,997 23.5 mi
2003 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 108,204 40.2 mi
2018 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 96,949 35.2 mi
2003 Equipment and vehicle use 63,720 48.9 mi
2003 Arson/incendiarism 59,788 42.6 mi
2016 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 41,432 34.6 mi
2007 Misuse of fire by a minor 38,356 39.7 mi
1993 Arson/incendiarism 38,152 41.6 mi
2002 Arson/incendiarism 37,240 29.2 mi
2016 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 36,274 46.1 mi
2008 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 30,305 26.2 mi
5d Top ZIPs

Where in Cudahy do fires concentrate?

Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.

#ZIP5-yr incidents 
1 90201 282
2 90255 4
5e Peer cities

Cities similar to Cudahy

Six California cities with population within ±25% of Cudahy. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.

07 Stay prepared

Before the next Red Flag day.

A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.

About this data

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.