In 2025, fire departments serving McRae responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $22K 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 68% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
215 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $100K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 26 | — | |
| 2022 | 57 | +119.2% | |
| 2023 | 48 | -15.8% | |
| 2024 | 46 | -4.2% | |
| 2025 | 38 | -17.4% |
For the 2 building fires McRae departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 98 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 | 31 | 31.6% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 21 | 21.4% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 10 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 8.2% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 4.1% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Other | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 12.2% |
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 McRae mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 78 | 79.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 4.1% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 4 | 4.1% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 10 | Match | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 2.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by McRae departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $22,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. McRae sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 10,367 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,779 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 30.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 776 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 636 | 29.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 524 | 30.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 456 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 441 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 367 | 12.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 282 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 278 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 275 | 31.7 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 270 | 8.8 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 Arkansas cities with population within ±25% of McRae. 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.