In 2025, fire departments serving Summerton responded to 72 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 49% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
550 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 97 | — | |
| 2022 | 143 | +47.4% | |
| 2023 | 100 | -30.1% | |
| 2024 | 138 | +38.0% | |
| 2025 | 72 | -47.8% |
For the 6 building fires Summerton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 390 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 | 253 | 64.9% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 20 | 5.1% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 18 | 4.6% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 17 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 12 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Other | 8 | 2.1% | |
| 7 | Exterior, exposed surface | 8 | 2.1% | |
| 8 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 7 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 6 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 35 | 9.0% |
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 Summerton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 328 | 84.1% | |
| 2 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 9 | 2.3% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 8 | 2.1% | |
| 4 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 7 | 1.8% | |
| 5 | Radiated heat from another fire | 7 | 1.8% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 5 | 1.3% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 4 | 1.0% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 1.0% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 0.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 0.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 3.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Summerton departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 92% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $6,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Summerton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 26,318 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,684 | 13.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,484 | 39.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,922 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 1,834 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,695 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,600 | 27.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 1,247 | 35.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,200 | 14.7 mi | |
| 2017 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,115 | 39.4 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 985 | 38.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 862 | 26.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 709 | 48.8 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 South Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Summerton. 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.