In 2025, fire departments serving Eureka responded to 44 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $600K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 73% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
212 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $1.6M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 62 | — | |
| 2022 | 33 | -46.8% | |
| 2023 | 28 | -15.2% | |
| 2024 | 45 | +60.7% | |
| 2025 | 44 | -2.2% |
For the 4 building fires Eureka departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 22 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 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 18.2% | |
| 2 | Storage area, other | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Other | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 18.2% |
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 Eureka mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 18.2% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 18.2% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 4 | 18.2% | |
| 4 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Match | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 9.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Eureka departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $600,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $130,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Eureka sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,024 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 375 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 210 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 110 | 36.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 19.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 33.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 60 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 18.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 31.0 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 Eureka. 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.