In 2025, fire departments serving Elwood responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 53% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
234 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $69K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 | — | |
| 2022 | 41 | -16.3% | |
| 2023 | 47 | +14.6% | |
| 2024 | 50 | +6.4% | |
| 2025 | 47 | -6.0% |
For the 5 building fires Elwood departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 37 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 21.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 18.9% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 13.5% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Egress/exit, other | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 13.5% |
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 Elwood mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 15 | 40.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 9 | 24.3% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Munitions | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elwood departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $3,000 | Fire in mobile prop. used as a fixed struc., other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elwood sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 110,555 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 19,225 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 17,050 | 23.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 11,765 | 17.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 11,638 | 19.6 mi | |
| 1992 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,284 | 28.8 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 4,832 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,577 | 8.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 3,477 | 21.2 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,900 | 22.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,730 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,600 | 33.5 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,450 | 10.1 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 New Jersey cities with population within ±25% of Elwood. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Elwood.
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.