In 2025, fire departments serving La Grange responded to 40 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 73% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
132 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $161K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 18 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | +77.8% | |
| 2023 | 19 | -40.6% | |
| 2024 | 23 | +21.1% | |
| 2025 | 40 | +73.9% |
For the 5 building fires La Grange departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 67 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 | Outside area, other | 52 | 77.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 3 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 1.5% |
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 La Grange mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 59 | 88.1% | |
| 2 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 3 | Lightning | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 7 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 1.5% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. La Grange sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 31,509 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 24,600 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 1,300 | 40.3 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 650 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 491 | 43.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 363 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | 300 | 12.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 288 | 49.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 260 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 251 | 32.0 mi | |
| 1995 | Natural | 240 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 216 | 33.5 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 | 28551 | 132 |
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of La Grange. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in La Grange.
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.