In 2025, fire departments serving Salem responded to 61 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $83K 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 54% of all calls.
Dec peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
426 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 68 | — | |
| 2022 | 92 | +35.3% | |
| 2023 | 115 | +25.0% | |
| 2024 | 90 | -21.7% | |
| 2025 | 61 | -32.2% |
For the 7 building fires Salem departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 112 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 | 34 | 30.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 23 | 20.5% | |
| 3 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 6 | 5.4% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 5 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Other | 4 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 2 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 24 | 21.4% |
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 Salem mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 59 | 52.7% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 18 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 10 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 3 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 5.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Salem departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $83,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Salem sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,617 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 870 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 450 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 354 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 280 | 46.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 220 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 182 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 165 | 46.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 157 | 28.0 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 156 | 46.2 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 47167 | 426 |
Six Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Salem. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Salem.
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.