In 2025, fire departments serving Pataskala responded to 135 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K 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 59% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
806 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 144 | — | |
| 2022 | 161 | +11.8% | |
| 2023 | 152 | -5.6% | |
| 2024 | 214 | +40.8% | |
| 2025 | 135 | -36.9% |
For the 24 building fires Pataskala departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 179 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 | Undetermined | 36 | 20.1% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 31 | 17.3% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 28 | 15.6% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 14 | 7.8% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 7 | 3.9% | |
| 6 | Other | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Exterior, exposed surface | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 36 | 20.1% |
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 Pataskala mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 98 | 54.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 12 | 6.7% | |
| 3 | Cigarette lighter | 10 | 5.6% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 6 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Radiated heat from another fire | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 18 | 10.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Pataskala departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 94% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $83,600 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $75,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $60,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $50,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Pataskala sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,472 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 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 280 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2013 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 53 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 18.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 33.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 38.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 35 | 27.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 35 | 40.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 32.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 46.8 mi |
Top 6 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 Pataskala. 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.