In 2025, fire departments serving Eaton responded to 86 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $60K 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 57% of all calls.
Sep peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
715 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $999K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 138 | — | |
| 2022 | 173 | +25.4% | |
| 2023 | 123 | -28.9% | |
| 2024 | 195 | +58.5% | |
| 2025 | 86 | -55.9% |
For the 20 building fires Eaton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 244 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 | 41 | 16.8% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 36 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 25 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 25 | 10.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 16 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 11 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 9 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 6 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Other | 5 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 5 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 65 | 26.6% |
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 Eaton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 132 | 54.1% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 16 | 6.6% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 16 | 6.6% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 11 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 10 | 4.1% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 10 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 9 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 8 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 5 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 21 | 8.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Eaton departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 93% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $60,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $60,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $33,517 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $15,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Eaton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 2 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 40 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15 | 49.7 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Eaton. 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.