In 2025, fire departments serving Willow Springs responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 57% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
288 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 57 | — | |
| 2022 | 63 | +10.5% | |
| 2023 | 67 | +6.3% | |
| 2024 | 54 | -19.4% | |
| 2025 | 47 | -13.0% |
For the 3 building fires Willow Springs departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 42 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 | 12 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 10 | 23.8% | |
| 3 | Function area, other | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Office | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Personal service area, barber/beauty salon area | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 21.4% |
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 Willow Springs mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 71.4% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Candle | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 4.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Willow Springs departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,500 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Willow Springs sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,291 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 750 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 600 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 450 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 396 | 32.4 mi | |
| 1993 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 341 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 291 | 31.7 mi | |
| 2019 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 274 | 33.3 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 253 | 32.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 244 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 232 | 29.5 mi | |
| 2019 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 216 | 32.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 204 | 31.4 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Willow Springs. 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.