In 2025, fire departments serving Payne responded to 12 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $60K 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 58% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
81 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 13 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | +53.8% | |
| 2023 | 17 | -15.0% | |
| 2024 | 19 | +11.8% | |
| 2025 | 12 | -36.8% |
For the 3 building fires Payne departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 41 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 | Outside area, other | 7 | 17.1% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 26.8% |
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 Payne mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 26.8% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 17.1% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Match | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 4.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Payne departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $60,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $4,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Payne sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 7 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 193 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 14.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 35 | 24.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 26.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 10 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 31.5 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 Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Payne. 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.