In 2025, fire departments serving Marion responded to 207 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $90K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 52% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,101 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 197 | — | |
| 2022 | 226 | +14.7% | |
| 2023 | 215 | -4.9% | |
| 2024 | 256 | +19.1% | |
| 2025 | 207 | -19.1% |
For the 21 building fires Marion departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 176 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 33 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 30 | 17.0% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 11 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 6 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Undetermined | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 53 | 30.1% |
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 Marion mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 46 | 26.1% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 22 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 19 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 15 | 8.5% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 11 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Fireworks | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Heat source: other | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 31 | 17.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Marion departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 75% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $90,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $7,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Marion sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,208 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 | 824 | 31.4 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 402 | 38.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 32.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 360 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 316 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 228 | 32.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 21.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 26.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 160 | 19.5 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 Iowa cities with population within ±25% of Marion. 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.