In 2025, fire departments serving Statham responded to 64 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Feb peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
366 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $566K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 76 | +52.0% | |
| 2023 | 92 | +21.1% | |
| 2024 | 84 | -8.7% | |
| 2025 | 64 | -23.8% |
For the 5 building fires Statham departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 85 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 | 35 | 41.2% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 13 | 15.3% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 6 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Outside area, other | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 15 | 17.6% |
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 Statham mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 53 | 62.4% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 7 | 8.2% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.2% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 9.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Statham departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $7,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Statham sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,459 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Debris and open burning | 547 | 35.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 301 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 215 | 33.2 mi | |
| 1999 | Natural | 150 | 27.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 145 | 45.4 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 135 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 131 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 119 | 35.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 119 | 44.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 114 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 110 | 45.6 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 Georgia cities with population within ±25% of Statham. 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.