In 2025, fire departments serving Genoa responded to 20 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 60% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
143 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $771K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 34 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | +8.8% | |
| 2023 | 21 | -43.2% | |
| 2024 | 31 | +47.6% | |
| 2025 | 20 | -35.5% |
For the 5 building fires Genoa departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 56 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 14 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 12 | 21.4% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Shipping/receiving area; loading area, dock or bay | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Wall assembly | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 23.2% |
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 Genoa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 22 | 39.3% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 5 | 8.9% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 3.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Genoa departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $400 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Genoa sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 19 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 817 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 300 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 77 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 69 | 16.5 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 42 | 37.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 22 | 23.1 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 16 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 12 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 11 | 30.3 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 43430 | 143 |
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Genoa. 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.