In 2025, fire departments serving Lake Lure responded to 75 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $15K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Hazardous condition, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
537 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $586K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 109 | — | |
| 2022 | 128 | +17.4% | |
| 2023 | 128 | +0.0% | |
| 2024 | 97 | -24.2% | |
| 2025 | 75 | -22.7% |
For the 5 building fires Lake Lure departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 32 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 | 7 | 21.9% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 4 | Storage area, other | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Light shaft | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 18.8% |
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 Lake Lure mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 18 | 56.2% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 3.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Lake Lure departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $2,000 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lake Lure sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 79,508 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,623 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,120 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,913 | 0.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,431 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,964 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 5,500 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 5,015 | 32.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,163 | 19.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,943 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 2,738 | 42.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 2,579 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 2,404 | 30.6 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 | 28746 | 537 |
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Lake Lure. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Lake Lure.
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.