In 2025, fire departments serving Petersburg responded to 55 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 67% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
204 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.4M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 37 | — | |
| 2022 | 42 | +13.5% | |
| 2023 | 34 | -19.0% | |
| 2024 | 36 | +5.9% | |
| 2025 | 55 | +52.8% |
For the 14 building fires Petersburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 75 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 | 22 | 29.3% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 10 | 13.3% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Storage area, other | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 14.7% |
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 Petersburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 29 | 38.7% | |
| 2 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 6 | 8.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Conducted heat from another fire | 4 | 5.3% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 12.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Petersburg departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $7,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Petersburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,546 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 375 | 25.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 26.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 26.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 26.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 12.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 25.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 55 | 22.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 16.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 24.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 31.8 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Petersburg. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Petersburg.
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.