In 2025, fire departments serving Moreland Hills responded to 49 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K 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 78% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
221 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $254K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 38 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | -2.6% | |
| 2023 | 48 | +29.7% | |
| 2024 | 49 | +2.1% | |
| 2025 | 49 | +0.0% |
For the 3 building fires Moreland Hills departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 32 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 | Outside area, other | 6 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 5 | Wall assembly | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 25.0% |
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 Moreland Hills mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 37.5% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 3 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 12.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Moreland Hills departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $89 | Outside mailbox fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Moreland Hills sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 4 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 475 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 16.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 25 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 | 25.0 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Moreland Hills. 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.