In 2025, fire departments serving Hillman responded to 44 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 75% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
196 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $25K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 45 | — | |
| 2022 | 30 | -33.3% | |
| 2023 | 49 | +63.3% | |
| 2024 | 28 | -42.9% | |
| 2025 | 44 | +57.1% |
For the 2 building fires Hillman departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 37 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 | 6 | 16.2% | |
| 2 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 10 | Other | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 16.2% |
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 Hillman mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 27.0% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 21.6% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 18.9% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 1 | 2.7% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hillman sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 35,430 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 8,586 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 5,818 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 5,200 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,250 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,900 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 1,345 | 49.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,238 | 46.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,035 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 844 | 40.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 840 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 820 | 35.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 778 | 45.5 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 Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Hillman. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Hillman.
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.