In 2025, fire departments serving Lebanon responded to 81 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $75K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Carbon monoxide incident lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
340 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $514K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 54 | — | |
| 2022 | 72 | +33.3% | |
| 2023 | 69 | -4.2% | |
| 2024 | 64 | -7.2% | |
| 2025 | 81 | +26.6% |
For the 5 building fires Lebanon departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 43 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 | 14 | 32.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 12 | 27.9% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 14.0% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 2.3% |
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 Lebanon mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 31 | 72.1% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 6 | 14.0% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 6 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 2.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Lebanon departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lebanon sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,317 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,475 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Natural | 225 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 49.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 150 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 49.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 29.5 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 39.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 40.6 mi |
Top 3 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 Lebanon. 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.