In 2025, fire departments serving Bangor responded to 307 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $121K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Special outside fire, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 49% of all calls.
Sep peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,580 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $3.4M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 294 | — | |
| 2022 | 253 | -13.9% | |
| 2023 | 357 | +41.1% | |
| 2024 | 369 | +3.4% | |
| 2025 | 307 | -16.8% |
For the 26 building fires Bangor departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 208 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 39 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 28 | 13.5% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 22 | 10.6% | |
| 4 | Wall surface: exterior | 15 | 7.2% | |
| 5 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 10 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 9 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 8 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 60 | 28.8% |
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 Bangor mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 81 | 38.9% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 35 | 16.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 22 | 10.6% | |
| 4 | Cigarette | 13 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 9 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 7 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 18 | 8.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Bangor departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 94% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $121,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Bangor sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,806 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 205 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 161 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 124 | 39.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 120 | 44.6 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 105 | 42.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 100 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 77 | 34.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 75 | 46.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 61 | 35.1 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 13.0 mi |
Top 5 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 Bangor. 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.