In 2025, fire departments serving Freeland responded to 66 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $231K 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 64% of all calls.
May peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
373 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $649K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 75 | — | |
| 2022 | 70 | -6.7% | |
| 2023 | 73 | +4.3% | |
| 2024 | 89 | +21.9% | |
| 2025 | 66 | -25.8% |
For the 10 building fires Freeland departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 88 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 16 | 18.2% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 11 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 8 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 21 | 23.9% |
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 Freeland mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 31 | 35.2% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 9.1% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Match | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Chemical reaction | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 15 | 17.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Freeland departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $230,600 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Special outside fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $18,365 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Freeland sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,029 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 335 | 21.7 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 289 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 257 | 41.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Debris and open burning | 253 | 45.1 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 202 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Natural | 186 | 21.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 178 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 155 | 21.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Recreation and ceremony | 97 | 38.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 31.0 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 74 | 49.2 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Freeland. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Freeland.
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.