In 2025, fire departments serving Woodlawn responded to 28 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K 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 68% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
140 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $736K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 25 | — | |
| 2022 | 21 | -16.0% | |
| 2023 | 28 | +33.3% | |
| 2024 | 38 | +35.7% | |
| 2025 | 28 | -26.3% |
For the 6 building fires Woodlawn departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 55 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 | 16 | 29.1% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 13 | 23.6% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 12.7% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 5 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 10.9% |
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 Woodlawn mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 31 | 56.4% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Match | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 3.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Woodlawn departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Woodlawn sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,725 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,000 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 21.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 160 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 160 | 25.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 24.0 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 97 | 36.2 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 23.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 73 | 44.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 29.1 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 38.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 43.1 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Woodlawn. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Woodlawn.
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.