In 2025, fire departments serving Peninsula responded to 28 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $400K 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 75% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
102 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $517K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 17 | -15.0% | |
| 2023 | 15 | -11.8% | |
| 2024 | 22 | +46.7% | |
| 2025 | 28 | +27.3% |
For the 8 building fires Peninsula departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 19 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 | 4 | 21.1% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 21.1% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 10.5% | |
| 5 | Other | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 9 | Separate operator/control area of transportation | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 1 | 5.3% |
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 Peninsula mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 5 | 26.3% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 10.5% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 10.5% | |
| 7 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 5.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Peninsula departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $400,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Peninsula sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 19 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 997 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 175 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 47.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 25 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 22 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 40.6 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 | 44264 | 102 |
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Peninsula. 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.