ZIP 28638 recorded 73 fire and hazmat incidents in 2025, 374 across 2021–2025. Primary county: Caldwell County, NC. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as Moderate.
374 incidents from 2021 through 2025 inside this ZIP.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 72 | |
| 2022 | 48 | |
| 2023 | 69 | |
| 2024 | 112 | |
| 2025 | 73 |
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Aggregated across all 5 years inside this ZIP.
Top 5 NFIRS incident types for ZIP 28638 across 2021–2025.
| # | Incident type | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Building fires | 76 | 20.3% | |
| 2 | Power line down | 31 | 8.3% | |
| 3 | Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) | 27 | 7.2% | |
| 4 | Authorized controlled burning | 24 | 6.4% | |
| 5 | Unauthorized burning | 23 | 6.1% |
For the 8 building fires reported here in 2025, here's how investigators classified ignition cause.
NFIRS Area of Origin for ZIP 28638 fires across 2021–2025.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 17 | 19.3% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 13 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 11 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | All other areas | 22 | 25.0% |
NFIRS HEAT_SOURC code — the physical thing that started the fire.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 28 | 31.8% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 12 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 10 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | All other sources | 15 | 17.0% |
Largest single-incident losses in ZIP 28638 across 2021–2025. These 8 fires alone account for 805% of the ZIP's 2025 reported total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Year | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | 2022 | Significant |
| 2 | $100,000 | Fire, other | 2023 | Significant |
| 3 | $100,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | 2024 | Significant |
| 4 | $100,000 | Building fires | 2024 | Significant |
| 5 | $50,000 | Building fires | 2023 | Significant |
| 6 | $50,000 | Building fires | 2023 | Significant |
| 7 | $50,000 | Building fires | 2024 | Significant |
| 8 | $50,000 | Building fires | 2024 | Significant |
Some ZIPs span multiple cities. Ranked by 5-yr NFIRS incidents inside ZIP 28638.
| # | City | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hudson | 361 | |
| 2 | Granite Falls | 10 | |
| 3 | Lenoir | 1 | |
| 4 | Sawmills | 1 |
The figures above are historical. For today's air quality, fire-weather warnings, and active fires, go to the official sources.
NFIRS reports each fire incident with a 5-digit address ZIP. We aggregate those rows directly to produce ZIP-level totals — 374 incidents in this ZIP across 2021–2025. Building-fire breakdowns (Area of Origin, Heat Source, ignition cause) only count fires investigators classified beyond the basic incident report. Because NFIRS reporting is voluntary, totals are a strong indicator rather than a complete census.