In 2025, fire departments serving Ashfield responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 96% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
259 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $15K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 56 | +12.0% | |
| 2023 | 62 | +10.7% | |
| 2024 | 45 | -27.4% | |
| 2025 | 46 | +2.2% |
For the 0 building fires Ashfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 9 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 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 6 | Exterior, exposed surface | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 1 | 11.1% |
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 Ashfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 4 | 44.4% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 11.1% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Ashfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,995 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 23.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 272 | 22.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 20.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 130 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 30.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 79 | 48.5 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 55 | 15.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 51 | 24.1 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 50 | 45.3 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 49.4 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Ashfield. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.