In 2025, fire departments serving Surgoinsville responded to 49 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K 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 49% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
237 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.5M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 38 | — | |
| 2022 | 46 | +21.1% | |
| 2023 | 57 | +23.9% | |
| 2024 | 47 | -17.5% | |
| 2025 | 49 | +4.3% |
For the 7 building fires Surgoinsville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 54 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 16 | 29.6% | |
| 2 | Other | 10 | 18.5% | |
| 3 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 3 | 5.6% | |
| 4 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 3 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 10 | 18.5% |
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 Surgoinsville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 20 | 37.0% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 11 | 20.4% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 7.4% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 3 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 5.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Surgoinsville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $15,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $400 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Surgoinsville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 69,878 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 7,400 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,964 | 40.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,860 | 38.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,539 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,300 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,040 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,000 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,943 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 2,850 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,765 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 2,738 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,500 | 49.0 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Tennessee cities with population within ±25% of Surgoinsville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Surgoinsville.
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.