In 2025, fire departments serving Goreville responded to 53 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 39% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
201 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 35 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | -8.6% | |
| 2023 | 35 | +9.4% | |
| 2024 | 46 | +31.4% | |
| 2025 | 53 | +15.2% |
For the 4 building fires Goreville 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 | Undetermined | 27 | 30.7% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 11 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 12.5% |
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 Goreville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 51 | 58.0% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 8.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Goreville 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 | $50,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,500 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Goreville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,573 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,000 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 409 | 26.6 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 245 | 24.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 14.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 177 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 176 | 34.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 160 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 38.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 36.4 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 Goreville. 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.