In 2025, fire departments serving Wheelersburg responded to 69 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $133K 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 56% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
441 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.9M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 79 | — | |
| 2022 | 100 | +26.6% | |
| 2023 | 82 | -18.0% | |
| 2024 | 111 | +35.4% | |
| 2025 | 69 | -37.8% |
For the 15 building fires Wheelersburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 168 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 | 38 | 22.6% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 23 | 13.7% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 18 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 14 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Other | 7 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 6 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Wildland, woods | 6 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 5 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 39 | 23.2% |
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 Wheelersburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 98 | 58.3% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 13 | 7.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 11 | 6.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 3.0% | |
| 7 | Match | 4 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 3 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 3 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 15 | 8.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Wheelersburg departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $132,728 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $2,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $600 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Wheelersburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 13,719 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,865 | 19.5 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 1,016 | 19.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 1,000 | 28.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 870 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 650 | 27.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 591 | 34.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 500 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 476 | 7.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Debris and open burning | 450 | 10.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 448 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 400 | 9.0 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 390 | 23.6 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 Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Wheelersburg. 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.