An analysis of Spatio–temporal patterns of fires in an Iranian city

Exploring Spatio–temporal patterns of fire incidents provides important information to help develop strategies to prevent and mitigate fire risk based on geographical knowledge. This study aims to map and analyse the Spatio–temporal patterns of urban fire incidents. Fire incident data were obtained from Ardabil Municipality Fire Department and Emergency Services and analysed using radial shape charts, kernel density estimation and average nearest neighbour to quantify spatial and Spatio–temporal patterns of fires. The results show that the Spatio–temporal fire patterns vary, depending on time, their types and causes. Interestingly, results indicate that fires are most likely to occur on Tuesdays and Thursdays and during summer. The study provides evidence to enhance decision-making on resource allocation in terms of establishing new fire stations and deploying an additional workforce to more vulnerable localities, or to formulate prevention strategies, such as education campaigns, to mitigate fire risk.