In 2025, fire departments serving Knightstown responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
276 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.8M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 45 | — | |
| 2022 | 71 | +57.8% | |
| 2023 | 53 | -25.4% | |
| 2024 | 61 | +15.1% | |
| 2025 | 46 | -24.6% |
For the 16 building fires Knightstown departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 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 | 15 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 13.3% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 5 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 15.6% |
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 Knightstown mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 22 | 48.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 8 | 17.8% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Knightstown departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $75,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Knightstown sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 4 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,880 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,549 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 165 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 156 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10 | 38.4 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 46148 | 276 |
Six Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Knightstown. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Knightstown.
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.