In 2025, fire departments serving Hamlin responded to 25 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 72% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
104 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 14 | — | |
| 2022 | 21 | +50.0% | |
| 2023 | 14 | -33.3% | |
| 2024 | 30 | +114.3% | |
| 2025 | 25 | -16.7% |
For the 5 building fires Hamlin departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 43 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 | 22 | 51.2% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Structural area, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 11.6% |
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 Hamlin mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 69.8% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Candle | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 1 | 2.3% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hamlin sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 65,507 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Fireworks | 4,637 | 43.8 mi | |
| 1994 | Fireworks | 4,552 | 45.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,484 | 45.2 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,475 | 45.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Fireworks | 3,358 | 46.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,328 | 20.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Fireworks | 3,186 | 44.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Fireworks | 3,171 | 34.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,082 | 24.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,500 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Fireworks | 2,412 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,250 | 20.4 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 West Virginia cities with population within ±25% of Hamlin. 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.