In 2025, fire departments serving Nora Springs responded to 23 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K 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 70% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
93 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $526K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 12 | — | |
| 2022 | 19 | +58.3% | |
| 2023 | 24 | +26.3% | |
| 2024 | 15 | -37.5% | |
| 2025 | 23 | +53.3% |
For the 1 building fires Nora Springs departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 18 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 38.9% | |
| 2 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Storage area, other | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Conveyor | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Wall assembly | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 9 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 1 | 5.6% |
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 Nora Springs mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 27.8% | |
| 2 | Heat, spark from friction | 4 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 3 | 16.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 5.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Nora Springs departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $4,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Nora Springs sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,142 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 | 750 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 500 | 31.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 177 | 43.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 39.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 22.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 22.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 85 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 85 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 15.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 24.8 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 | 50458 | 93 |
Six Iowa cities with population within ±25% of Nora Springs. 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.