In 2025, fire departments serving Leesburg responded to 18 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K 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 67% of all calls.
Dec peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
105 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | +0.0% | |
| 2023 | 24 | +20.0% | |
| 2024 | 23 | -4.2% | |
| 2025 | 18 | -21.7% |
For the 3 building fires Leesburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 24 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 | 11 | 45.8% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Office | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Outside area, other | 1 | 4.2% |
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 Leesburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 58.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 4.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Leesburg departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Leesburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 6 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 147 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 35 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15 | 26.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 15 | 35.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 12 | 31.8 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Leesburg. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Leesburg.
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.