In 2025, fire departments serving Etowah responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
161 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $160K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 42 | — | |
| 2022 | 29 | -31.0% | |
| 2023 | 32 | +10.3% | |
| 2024 | 20 | -37.5% | |
| 2025 | 38 | +90.0% |
For the 6 building fires Etowah departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 28 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 | 7 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Storage area, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 9 | Other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 14.3% |
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 Etowah mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 7 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 25.0% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Etowah sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 53,003 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,623 | 20.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,913 | 23.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,964 | 42.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,163 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,943 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2,307 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 2,235 | 31.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,200 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 1,760 | 47.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,477 | 19.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,285 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 1,268 | 47.3 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 North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Etowah. 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.