In 2025, fire departments serving Oppelo responded to 15 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $15K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Trash or rubbish fire, contained lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
67 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $569K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 9 | — | |
| 2022 | 22 | +144.4% | |
| 2023 | 10 | -54.5% | |
| 2024 | 11 | +10.0% | |
| 2025 | 15 | +36.4% |
For the 1 building fires Oppelo departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 24 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 | 4 | 16.7% | |
| 2 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 3 | Wall assembly | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 4 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 20.8% |
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 Oppelo mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 41.7% | |
| 2 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 5 | 20.8% | |
| 3 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 4.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oppelo departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oppelo sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 34,961 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Natural | 5,091 | 23.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 4,000 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,983 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,067 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,014 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,653 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 1,435 | 47.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,401 | 9.0 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,052 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,014 | 24.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,004 | 40.1 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 | 72110 | 67 |
Six Arkansas cities with population within ±25% of Oppelo. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Oppelo.
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.