In 2025, fire departments serving Illiopolis responded to 25 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 96% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
105 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | -13.0% | |
| 2023 | 17 | -15.0% | |
| 2024 | 20 | +17.6% | |
| 2025 | 25 | +25.0% |
For the 8 building fires Illiopolis departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 64 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 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 35 | 54.7% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 10 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 6 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 4.7% |
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 Illiopolis mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 53 | 82.8% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.1% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 3.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 3.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 1 | 1.6% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Illiopolis sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,573 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 375 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 13.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 39.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 20.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 20.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 55 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 18.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 33.3 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Illiopolis. 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.