In 2025, fire departments serving Rantoul responded to 168 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $4.0M building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 59% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
761 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $7.9M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 127 | — | |
| 2022 | 140 | +10.2% | |
| 2023 | 122 | -12.9% | |
| 2024 | 204 | +67.2% | |
| 2025 | 168 | -17.6% |
For the 29 building fires Rantoul departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 120 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 | 14 | 11.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 13 | 10.8% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 13 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Function area, other | 4 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 39 | 32.5% |
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 Rantoul mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 65 | 54.2% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 11 | 9.2% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 7.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 8 | Cigarette | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 13 | 10.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rantoul departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4,000,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $160,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $150,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $115,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $60,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $40,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $30,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rantoul sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 840 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 | 100 | 28.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 50 | 16.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 1.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 | 34.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 35 | 17.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 35 | 46.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 37.1 mi |
Top 4 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 Rantoul. 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.