In 2025, fire departments serving Wilkes County responded to 201 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $175K property loss. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as Moderate.
Building fires lead by count. Top five categories make up about 56% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips.
1,205 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 213 | |
| 2022 | 346 | |
| 2023 | 257 | |
| 2024 | 188 | |
| 2025 | 201 |
For the 38 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Wilkes County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 93% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $175,000 | NORTH WILKESBORO | Building fires | Significant |
| 2 | $88,800 | BOOMER | Building fires | Significant |
| 3 | $75,000 | MCGRADY | Building fires | Significant |
| 4 | $71,000 | WILKESBORO | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 5 | $70,000 | Purlear | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant |
| 6 | $35,000 | NORTH WILKESBORO | Building fires | Significant |
| 7 | $20,000 | NORTH WILKESBORO | Building fires | Significant |
| 8 | $10,000 | Wilkesboro | Building fires | Significant |
| 9 | $10,000 | NORTH WILKESBORO | Building fires | Significant |
| 10 | $10,000 | North Wilkesboro | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 37193.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| North Wilkesboro | 4,349 | View › |
| Wilkesboro | 3,674 | View › |
| Cricket | 2,491 | View › |
| Mulberry | 1,980 | View › |
| Fairplains | 1,709 | View › |
| Millers Creek | 1,475 | View › |
| Hays | 1,389 | View › |
| Moravian Falls | 1,023 | View › |
| Pleasant Hill | 867 | View › |
| Ronda | 516 | View › |
| Pleasant Ridge | 0 | View › |
| Dehart | 0 | View › |
11 departments report from this county.
Top 10 fire perimeters by acres burned (state-scoped fallback while we build out per-county polygons).
| # | Name | Year | Agency | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GREAT LAKES | 2023 | USFS | 32,155 |
| 2 | Whipping Creek Road | 2016 | PRI | 15,456 |
| 3 | COLLETT RIDGE | 2023 | USFS | 5,506 |
| 4 | St Mary's | 2008 | NPS | 4,565 |
| 5 | Carolina Bay | 2009 | USFS | 2,659 |
| 6 | Big Ditch | 2021 | FWS | 1,486 |
| 7 | HANCOCK CREEK | 2022 | USFS | 1,177 |
| 8 | BUCK MTN | 2002 | NPS | 1,124 |
| 9 | NCMCR-FY19-RX-1.1.2.b | 2019 | FWS | 1,080 |
| 10 | VAF220152 | 2022 | NPS | 1,079 |
County-level NFIRS aggregates for 2025, plus 5-year totals across 2021–2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Wildfire risk score (0–100) and Expected Annual Loss come from FEMA's National Risk Index. Drought class is the most recent USDM classification (D0 = abnormally dry through D4 = exceptional drought). Historical fire perimeters are sourced from the NIFC InterAgency Fire Perimeter History.