In 2025, fire departments serving North Chicago responded to 163 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 64% of all calls.
Oct peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
757 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.2M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 159 | — | |
| 2022 | 127 | -20.1% | |
| 2023 | 141 | +11.0% | |
| 2024 | 167 | +18.4% | |
| 2025 | 163 | -2.4% |
For the 66 building fires North Chicago departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 153 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 | 31 | 20.3% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 22 | 14.4% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 15 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Other | 14 | 9.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 11 | 7.2% | |
| 6 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 6 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 5 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 35 | 22.9% |
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 North Chicago mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 92 | 60.1% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 13 | 8.5% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 12 | 7.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 9 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 2 | 1.3% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 1.3% | |
| 10 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 1.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 11 | 7.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by North Chicago departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 88% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $40,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. North Chicago sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,528 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 750 | 6.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 450 | 5.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 200 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 180 | 41.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 27.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 18.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 76 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 75 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 53 | 46.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 9.7 mi |
Top 7 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Illinois cities with population within ±25% of North Chicago. 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.