In 2025, fire departments serving Greendale responded to 36 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
169 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $5K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 24 | — | |
| 2022 | 36 | +50.0% | |
| 2023 | 38 | +5.6% | |
| 2024 | 35 | -7.9% | |
| 2025 | 36 | +2.9% |
For the 13 building fires Greendale departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 23 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 | 5 | 21.7% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 4 | 17.4% | |
| 3 | Storage area, other | 3 | 13.0% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Other | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Maintenance shop or area, paint shop or area | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 10 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 13.0% |
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 Greendale mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 52.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 4 | 17.4% | |
| 3 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 8.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 1 | 4.3% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Greendale sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,718 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 870 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 450 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 354 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 280 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 220 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 182 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 74 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 72 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 65 | 32.1 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 | 47025 | 169 |
Six Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Greendale. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Greendale.
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.