In 2025, fire departments serving Metamora responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
213 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $2.7M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | -36.0% | |
| 2023 | 42 | +31.2% | |
| 2024 | 42 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 47 | +11.9% |
For the 8 building fires Metamora departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 34 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 | 26.5% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 4 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 4 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 26.5% |
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 Metamora mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 55.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Match | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Chemical, natural heat source, other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Metamora departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $163,900 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $80,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $70,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $15,000 | Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $3,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Metamora sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,562 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 335 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 143 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 100 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 70 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 67 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Smoking | 64 | 13.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 63 | 48.7 mi | |
| 1994 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 48.4 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 40.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 53 | 32.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 51 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 28.6 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 Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Metamora. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Metamora.
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.