In 2025, fire departments serving Oneonta responded to 161 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K 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 53% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
687 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 92 | — | |
| 2022 | 90 | -2.2% | |
| 2023 | 158 | +75.6% | |
| 2024 | 186 | +17.7% | |
| 2025 | 161 | -13.4% |
For the 24 building fires Oneonta departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 204 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 | 29 | 14.2% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 22 | 10.8% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 22 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 20 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 15 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 8 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Other | 7 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Structural area, other | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 5 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 58 | 28.4% |
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 Oneonta mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 56 | 27.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 23 | 11.3% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 19 | 9.3% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 16 | 7.8% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 11 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 10 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 10 | 4.9% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 39 | 19.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oneonta departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $6,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oneonta sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 27,365 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 3,000 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 2,950 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,500 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,229 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,636 | 42.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,540 | 30.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,308 | 30.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 1,100 | 38.0 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,078 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 919 | 39.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 890 | 25.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | 800 | 37.7 mi |
Top 8 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Alabama cities with population within ±25% of Oneonta. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Oneonta.
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.