In 2025, fire departments serving White Bluff responded to 25 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K 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 84% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
98 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $225K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 14 | — | |
| 2022 | 14 | +0.0% | |
| 2023 | 21 | +50.0% | |
| 2024 | 24 | +14.3% | |
| 2025 | 25 | +4.2% |
For the 8 building fires White Bluff departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 35 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 | 11 | 31.4% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 5.7% |
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 White Bluff mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 54.3% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by White Bluff departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $4,670 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $3,000 | Power line down | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. White Bluff sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,267 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Natural | 585 | 49.4 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 331 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 330 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 312 | 30.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 300 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 240 | 39.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 235 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 230 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Equipment and vehicle use | 225 | 11.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 218 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 200 | 43.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 179 | 48.9 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 Tennessee cities with population within ±25% of White Bluff. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in White Bluff.
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.