ZIP 28709 recorded 36 fire and hazmat incidents in 2025, 157 across 2021–2025. Primary county: Buncombe County, NC. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as Very High.
157 incidents from 2021 through 2025 inside this ZIP.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 44 | |
| 2022 | 23 | |
| 2023 | 26 | |
| 2024 | 28 | |
| 2025 | 36 |
Apr peaks. Sep dips. Aggregated across all 5 years inside this ZIP.
Top 5 NFIRS incident types for ZIP 28709 across 2021–2025.
| # | Incident type | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Building fires | 33 | 21.0% | |
| 2 | Authorized controlled burning | 18 | 11.5% | |
| 3 | Unauthorized burning | 16 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | 14 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Power line down | 12 | 7.6% |
For the 2 building fires reported here in 2025, here's how investigators classified ignition cause.
NFIRS Area of Origin for ZIP 28709 fires across 2021–2025.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 5 | 16.1% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 12.9% | |
| 3 | Other | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 4 | Storage area, other | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 5 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | All other areas | 9 | 29.0% |
NFIRS HEAT_SOURC code — the physical thing that started the fire.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 45.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | All other sources | 5 | 16.1% |
Largest single-incident losses in ZIP 28709 across 2021–2025. These 8 fires alone account for 241% of the ZIP's 2025 reported total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Year | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | 2024 | Significant |
| 2 | $130,000 | Building fires | 2025 | Significant |
| 3 | $30,000 | Building fires | 2024 | Significant |
| 4 | $13,962 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2022 | Significant |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | 2021 | Significant |
| 6 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2025 | Significant |
| 7 | $3,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2025 | Significant |
| 8 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2025 | Significant |
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 — 157 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.