In 2025, fire departments serving Rougemont responded to 73 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Hazardous condition, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
386 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.2M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 75 | +50.0% | |
| 2023 | 109 | +45.3% | |
| 2024 | 79 | -27.5% | |
| 2025 | 73 | -7.6% |
For the 4 building fires Rougemont departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 136 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 | 50 | 36.8% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 26 | 19.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 15 | 11.0% | |
| 4 | Other | 10 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Structural area, other | 2 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 9.6% |
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 Rougemont mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 66 | 48.5% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 20 | 14.7% | |
| 3 | Match | 14 | 10.3% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 3.7% | |
| 5 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 5 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 6.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rougemont departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Outside storage fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $11,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rougemont sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 8,128 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 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,778 | 26.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Equipment and vehicle use | 500 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 456 | 17.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 339 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 300 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 289 | 21.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 274 | 31.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 257 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 254 | 27.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 216 | 21.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 166 | 45.3 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 North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Rougemont. 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.