In 2025, fire departments serving Peru responded to 137 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K 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.
May peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
551 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 84 | — | |
| 2022 | 100 | +19.0% | |
| 2023 | 110 | +10.0% | |
| 2024 | 120 | +9.1% | |
| 2025 | 137 | +14.2% |
For the 27 building fires Peru departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 60 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 | 19 | 31.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 11.7% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 4 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 20.0% |
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 Peru mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 38 | 63.3% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 1.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Peru departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 96% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $86,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,500 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Peru sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,393 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Natural | 600 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 210 | 7.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 3.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 110 | 9.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 100 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 48.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 25.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 11.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 60 | 6.9 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Peru. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Peru.
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.