In 2025, fire departments serving South Pekin responded to 13 fire and hazmat incidents . 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 92% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
56 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $18K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 17 | — | |
| 2022 | 12 | -29.4% | |
| 2023 | 7 | -41.7% | |
| 2024 | 7 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 13 | +85.7% |
For the 2 building fires South Pekin departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 16 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 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Outside area, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 9 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 1 | 6.2% |
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 South Pekin mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 31.2% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Match | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 6.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. South Pekin sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,708 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 | 375 | 13.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 26.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 23.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 28.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 37.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 33.1 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 40 | 32.7 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 South Pekin. 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.