In 2025, fire departments serving Obetz responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 69% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
204 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $525K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48 | — | |
| 2022 | 42 | -12.5% | |
| 2023 | 47 | +11.9% | |
| 2024 | 35 | -25.5% | |
| 2025 | 32 | -8.6% |
For the 3 building fires Obetz departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 40 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 | 11 | 27.5% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 8 | 20.0% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 15.0% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 12.5% |
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 Obetz mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 47.5% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Candle | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Obetz departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $1 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1 | Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Obetz sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,558 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 355 | 34.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 280 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 131 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2013 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 53 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 27.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 46 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 35 | 26.5 mi |
Top 4 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 Obetz. 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.