In 2025, fire departments serving Huntley responded to 166 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $125K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
Jul peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
819 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $2.5M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 169 | — | |
| 2022 | 168 | -0.6% | |
| 2023 | 169 | +0.6% | |
| 2024 | 147 | -13.0% | |
| 2025 | 166 | +12.9% |
For the 16 building fires Huntley departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 189 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 | 41 | 21.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 36 | 19.0% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 22 | 11.6% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 14 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 9 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Other | 7 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 6 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 4 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 38 | 20.1% |
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 Huntley mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 113 | 59.8% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 5.3% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 8 | 4.2% | |
| 4 | Cigarette | 8 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 6 | 3.2% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 4 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Radiated heat from another fire | 3 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 19 | 10.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Huntley departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 95% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $28,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Huntley sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,366 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 750 | 36.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 450 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 100 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 17.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 76 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 75 | 9.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 39.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 53 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 15.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 47.4 mi |
Top 4 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 Huntley. 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.