In 2025, fire departments serving Niota responded to 51 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $15K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Aircraft standby lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 73% of all calls.
Apr peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
338 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $445K cumulative property loss. 4 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 53 | — | |
| 2022 | 82 | +54.7% | |
| 2023 | 75 | -8.5% | |
| 2024 | 77 | +2.7% | |
| 2025 | 51 | -33.8% |
For the 4 building fires Niota departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 140 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 | 34 | 24.3% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 17 | 12.1% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 14 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 13 | 9.3% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 9 | 6.4% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 7 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 3 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 28 | 20.0% |
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 Niota mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 46 | 32.9% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 18 | 12.9% | |
| 3 | Match | 17 | 12.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 6.4% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 9 | 6.4% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 7 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 6 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 17 | 12.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Niota departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Niota sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 74,556 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Natural | 27,870 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,788 | 37.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,450 | 23.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,200 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,944 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,784 | 49.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,480 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,018 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,000 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 1,610 | 39.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1,600 | 11.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,500 | 43.1 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 Tennessee cities with population within ±25% of Niota. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
3 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Niota.
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.