In 2025, fire departments serving Elizabeth responded to 22 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K 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 68% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
177 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $410K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 31 | — | |
| 2022 | 36 | +16.1% | |
| 2023 | 43 | +19.4% | |
| 2024 | 45 | +4.7% | |
| 2025 | 22 | -51.1% |
For the 4 building fires Elizabeth departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 93 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 | 33 | 35.5% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 14 | 15.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 12 | 12.9% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 5 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Wall surface: exterior | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 14.0% |
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 Elizabeth mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 48 | 51.6% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 14 | 15.1% | |
| 3 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 8 | 8.6% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Candle | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 10 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 1.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elizabeth departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $5,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $2,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $1,700 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elizabeth sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,114 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 34.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 790 | 48.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 625 | 47.7 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 327 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 259 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 250 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 236 | 34.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 49.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 191 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 185 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 162 | 38.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 158 | 46.1 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26143 | 177 |
Six West Virginia cities with population within ±25% of Elizabeth. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Elizabeth.
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.