In 2025, fire departments serving Elida responded to 43 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $183K 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 54% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
217 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.5M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 34 | — | |
| 2022 | 54 | +58.8% | |
| 2023 | 41 | -24.1% | |
| 2024 | 45 | +9.8% | |
| 2025 | 43 | -4.4% |
For the 10 building fires Elida departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 80 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 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 13 | 16.2% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 15.0% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 10.0% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 7.5% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 11.2% |
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 Elida mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 39 | 48.8% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 8.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 5 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 11.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elida departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 92% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $183,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $40,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $35,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elida sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 5 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 460 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 332 | 49.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 30.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 48.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 27.4 mi |
Top 6 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 Elida. 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.