In 2025, fire departments serving Baldwin responded to 19 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 69% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
111 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $150K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 21 | — | |
| 2022 | 42 | +100.0% | |
| 2023 | 14 | -66.7% | |
| 2024 | 15 | +7.1% | |
| 2025 | 19 | +26.7% |
For the 4 building fires Baldwin departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 6 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 | Undetermined | 2 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 16.7% |
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 Baldwin mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 2 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 1 | 16.7% | |
| 5 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 16.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Baldwin departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Baldwin sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,095 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 329 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 30.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 26.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 236 | 28.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 139 | 28.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 49.3 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 64 | 47.3 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 25.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 26.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 42 | 27.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 31.4 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 Maine cities with population within ±25% of Baldwin. 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.