In 2025, fire departments serving Friendsville responded to 44 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $275K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Authorized controlled burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 68% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
214 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.9M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 36 | — | |
| 2022 | 35 | -2.8% | |
| 2023 | 52 | +48.6% | |
| 2024 | 47 | -9.6% | |
| 2025 | 44 | -6.4% |
For the 8 building fires Friendsville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 104 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 | 18 | 17.3% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 15 | 14.4% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 14 | 13.5% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 12 | 11.5% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 7 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 24 | 23.1% |
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 Friendsville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 38 | 36.5% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 10 | 9.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 7 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 20 | 19.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Friendsville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $275,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $61,100 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $40,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Friendsville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 98,572 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 17,140 | 37.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 10,641 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10,586 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 8,134 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,788 | 27.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,580 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,450 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,231 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,200 | 13.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,944 | 26.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,784 | 42.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,050 | 36.4 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Tennessee cities with population within ±25% of Friendsville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Friendsville.
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.