In 2025, fire departments serving Shelbyville responded to 55 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K 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 58% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
301 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.4M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 37 | — | |
| 2022 | 76 | +105.4% | |
| 2023 | 68 | -10.5% | |
| 2024 | 65 | -4.4% | |
| 2025 | 55 | -15.4% |
For the 11 building fires Shelbyville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 68 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 | 16 | 23.5% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 15 | 22.1% | |
| 3 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 5.9% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Exterior, exposed surface | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 19.1% |
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 Shelbyville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 41 | 60.3% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 8.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 4 | 5.9% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 2.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Shelbyville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $6,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Shelbyville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 22 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,096 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 | 200 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 0.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 34.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 30.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 14.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 39.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 34.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 8.6 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 8.1 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 Shelbyville. 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.