In 2025, fire departments serving Norway responded to 22 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 68% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
73 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 14 | — | |
| 2022 | 13 | -7.1% | |
| 2023 | 10 | -23.1% | |
| 2024 | 14 | +40.0% | |
| 2025 | 22 | +57.1% |
For the 5 building fires Norway departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 27 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 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 29.6% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 11.1% |
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 Norway mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 8 | 29.6% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 5 | 18.5% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Fireworks | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Match | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 11.1% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Norway sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 8,357 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,625 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 806 | 41.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 154 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 134 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 129 | 27.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 110 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 103 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 103 | 2.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 103 | 32.5 mi | |
| 2007 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 97 | 49.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Equipment and vehicle use | 87 | 21.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Recreation and ceremony | 85 | 27.7 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 | 49870 | 73 |
Six Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Norway. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Norway.
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.