In 2025, fire departments serving Johnston responded to 103 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $60K 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 56% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
512 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $893K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 93 | — | |
| 2022 | 92 | -1.1% | |
| 2023 | 80 | -13.0% | |
| 2024 | 144 | +80.0% | |
| 2025 | 103 | -28.5% |
For the 13 building fires Johnston departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 81 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 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 14.8% | |
| 2 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 9 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 9 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 7 | 8.6% | |
| 6 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Closet | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 24 | 29.6% |
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 Johnston mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 22 | 27.2% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 12 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Chemical reaction | 8 | 9.9% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 7 | 8.6% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 8.6% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Molten, hot material | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 9.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Johnston departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $60,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $4,041 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,500 | Fire in mobile prop. used as a fixed struc., other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Johnston sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,234 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Equipment and vehicle use | 700 | 16.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 346 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 328 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 320 | 31.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 46.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 105 | 35.0 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Iowa cities with population within ±25% of Johnston. 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.