In 2025, fire departments serving Fowler responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K 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 72% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
147 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.7M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 30 | +30.4% | |
| 2023 | 33 | +10.0% | |
| 2024 | 29 | -12.1% | |
| 2025 | 32 | +10.3% |
For the 10 building fires Fowler 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 | Undetermined | 11 | 39.3% | |
| 2 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - 5+ persons; including barrack/dormitory | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Structural area, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 3.6% |
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 Fowler mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 15 | 53.6% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 7.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Fowler departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $8 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Fowler sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 10 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 275 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 29.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 20 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 26.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 15 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 15 | 33.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | 10 | 35.0 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 Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Fowler. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Fowler.
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.