In 2025, fire departments serving McLouth responded to 34 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 71% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
257 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $401K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 59 | — | |
| 2022 | 51 | -13.6% | |
| 2023 | 58 | +13.7% | |
| 2024 | 55 | -5.2% | |
| 2025 | 34 | -38.2% |
For the 1 building fires McLouth departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 26 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 | 9 | 34.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 19.2% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 15.4% | |
| 4 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Wildland, woods | 1 | 3.8% |
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 McLouth mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 38.5% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Match | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by McLouth departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. McLouth sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 36,514 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 12,000 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,000 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,800 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 1,700 | 40.9 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,600 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 1,250 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 940 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 900 | 8.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 10.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 5.3 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Kansas cities with population within ±25% of McLouth. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in McLouth.
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.