In 2025, fire departments serving Magnolia responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 50% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
127 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $494K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 18 | — | |
| 2022 | 19 | +5.6% | |
| 2023 | 23 | +21.1% | |
| 2024 | 29 | +26.1% | |
| 2025 | 38 | +31.0% |
For the 5 building fires Magnolia departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 39 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 23.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 6 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Structural area, other | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 10.3% |
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 Magnolia mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 17 | 43.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 5 | 12.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Match | 1 | 2.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Magnolia departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Fire in mobile prop. used as a fixed struc., other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Magnolia sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,603 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 845 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 800 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 584 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 457 | 46.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 400 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 282 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 39.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 220 | 42.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 215 | 8.1 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 205 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 203 | 42.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Smoking | 201 | 17.7 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 Kentucky cities with population within ±25% of Magnolia. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Magnolia.
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.