In 2025, fire departments serving Old Fort responded to 104 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 76% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
378 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $7K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 71 | +42.0% | |
| 2023 | 50 | -29.6% | |
| 2024 | 103 | +106.0% | |
| 2025 | 104 | +1.0% |
For the 33 building fires Old Fort departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 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 | 10 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 5 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Structural area, other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Wall assembly | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 10 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 15.6% |
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 Old Fort mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 33 | 73.3% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 6 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 7 | Radiated heat from another fire | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Conducted heat from another fire | 1 | 2.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Old Fort sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 76,829 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,120 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 7,913 | 12.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,431 | 30.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,964 | 39.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 5,500 | 20.0 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 5,015 | 21.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,163 | 6.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,943 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 2,738 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 2,579 | 24.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 2,404 | 19.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 2,235 | 9.0 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Old Fort. 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.