In 2025, fire departments serving Tobaccoville responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $70K 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 65% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
284 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $712K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 51 | — | |
| 2022 | 74 | +45.1% | |
| 2023 | 57 | -23.0% | |
| 2024 | 56 | -1.8% | |
| 2025 | 46 | -17.9% |
For the 10 building fires Tobaccoville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 57 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 21.1% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 12.3% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 6 | 10.5% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 5 | 8.8% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 7 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 15.8% |
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 Tobaccoville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 24.6% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 7 | 12.3% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 10.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Match | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 15.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Tobaccoville departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $70,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $3,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $3,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $200 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Tobaccoville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 9,832 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Natural | 3,696 | 35.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 737 | 36.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 730 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 675 | 10.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 484 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 363 | 9.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 310 | 45.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 262 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 260 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 48.8 mi | |
| 1996 | Equipment and vehicle use | 214 | 41.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 210 | 37.8 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 North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Tobaccoville. 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.