In 2025, fire departments serving North Lima responded to 50 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 72% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
312 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.0M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 65 | — | |
| 2022 | 44 | -32.3% | |
| 2023 | 98 | +122.7% | |
| 2024 | 55 | -43.9% | |
| 2025 | 50 | -9.1% |
For the 4 building fires North Lima departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 67 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 17.9% | |
| 2 | Vehicle area, other | 8 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 11.9% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 6 | 9.0% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 6 | 9.0% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 17.9% |
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 Lima mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 35 | 52.2% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 13.4% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Radiated heat from another fire | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 7.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by North Lima departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. North Lima sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,364 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 342 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 175 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 18.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 37.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 47 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 41 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 38 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 23.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 31 | 47.2 mi |
Top 2 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 North Lima. 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.