In 2025, fire departments serving Morrison responded to 28 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Natural vegetation fire, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 61% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
190 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $54K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 46 | — | |
| 2022 | 36 | -21.7% | |
| 2023 | 49 | +36.1% | |
| 2024 | 31 | -36.7% | |
| 2025 | 28 | -9.7% |
For the 2 building fires Morrison departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 28 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 | 8 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Storage area, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Closet | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 3.6% |
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 Morrison mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 57.1% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Chemical, natural heat source, other | 1 | 3.6% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Morrison sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,098 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 1,500 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 640 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Recreation and ceremony | 265 | 12.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 39.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 195 | 20.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 100 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 100 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 75 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 42.6 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 61270 | 190 |
Six Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Morrison. 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.