In 2025, fire departments serving Elburn responded to 81 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $600K 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 55% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
412 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.0M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 66 | — | |
| 2022 | 81 | +22.7% | |
| 2023 | 110 | +35.8% | |
| 2024 | 74 | -32.7% | |
| 2025 | 81 | +9.5% |
For the 11 building fires Elburn departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 73 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 | 27.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 11 | 15.1% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 11 | 15.1% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 5.5% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 11.0% |
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 Elburn mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 39 | 53.4% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 5 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 10 | 13.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elburn departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $600,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $2,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $500 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elburn sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,521 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 750 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 600 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 450 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 232 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 210 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 100 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 47.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 34.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 75 | 10.1 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 45.7 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Elburn. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Elburn.
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.