In 2025, fire departments serving Hancock responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $16K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Cooking fire, confined to container lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 75% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
124 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.2M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 24 | — | |
| 2022 | 30 | +25.0% | |
| 2023 | 18 | -40.0% | |
| 2024 | 20 | +11.1% | |
| 2025 | 32 | +60.0% |
For the 0 building fires Hancock departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 20 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 | 6 | 30.0% | |
| 2 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 5.0% |
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 Hancock mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 13 | 65.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 5.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hancock departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $16,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $45 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $45 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $25 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $25 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hancock sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 20 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,255 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 1,127 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 700 | 27.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 5.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 388 | 15.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Equipment and vehicle use | 148 | 24.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 119 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 106 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Fireworks | 43 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 38 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Recreation and ceremony | 31 | 21.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 29 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 18 | 39.7 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 Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Hancock. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
3 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Hancock.
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.