In 2025, fire departments serving Rolesville responded to 30 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $353K 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 77% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
179 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $466K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 41 | — | |
| 2022 | 31 | -24.4% | |
| 2023 | 38 | +22.6% | |
| 2024 | 39 | +2.6% | |
| 2025 | 30 | -23.1% |
For the 7 building fires Rolesville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 46 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 | 9 | 19.6% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 9 | 19.6% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 10.9% | |
| 4 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Other | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Sales area, showroom (exclude display window) | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 19.6% |
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 Rolesville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 26 | 56.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 5 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 10.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rolesville departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $352,528 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $6,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rolesville sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 10,580 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,030 | 31.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,012 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,778 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 456 | 38.7 mi | |
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 339 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 300 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 289 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 274 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 257 | 15.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 254 | 13.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 42.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Natural | 240 | 33.2 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Rolesville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Rolesville.
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.