In 2025, fire departments serving Atkinson responded to 53 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Oct peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
223 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $184K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30 | — | |
| 2022 | 43 | +43.3% | |
| 2023 | 52 | +20.9% | |
| 2024 | 45 | -13.5% | |
| 2025 | 53 | +17.8% |
For the 10 building fires Atkinson departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 33 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 | Outside area, other | 11 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 5 | 15.2% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 5 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Closet | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 9.1% |
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 Atkinson mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 8 | 24.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 4 | 12.1% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 12.1% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 12.1% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 4 | 12.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 12.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Atkinson departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,500 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $500 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Atkinson sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,266 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 34.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 48.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 16.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 46.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 25.6 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Atkinson. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Atkinson.
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.