In 2025, fire departments serving Lesage responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
164 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 32 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | +15.6% | |
| 2023 | 21 | -43.2% | |
| 2024 | 42 | +100.0% | |
| 2025 | 32 | -23.8% |
For the 9 building fires Lesage departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 68 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 | Wildland, woods | 18 | 26.5% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 12 | 17.6% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 11 | 16.2% | |
| 4 | Storage area, other | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Closet | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 16.2% |
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 Lesage mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 43 | 63.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 6 | 8.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 4 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 6 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 9 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 5.9% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lesage sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 42,777 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,328 | 37.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,082 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,250 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,200 | 46.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,090 | 35.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,000 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,934 | 38.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,769 | 43.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,739 | 39.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,678 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,640 | 38.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,624 | 29.6 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six West Virginia cities with population within ±25% of Lesage. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Lesage.
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.