Two Lithium-Ion Battery Fires in Three Weeks Destroy Homes in Pasco County, Florida
Battery fires in Zephyrhills and New Port Richey destroyed two homes, killed a dog and displaced six people between Aug. 31 and Sept. 18.
FL
In 2025, fire departments serving Belle Glade responded to 75 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $103K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 61% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
417 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 64 | — | |
| 2022 | 83 | +29.7% | |
| 2023 | 103 | +24.1% | |
| 2024 | 92 | -10.7% | |
| 2025 | 75 | -18.5% |
For the 5 building fires Belle Glade departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 87 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 | Cooking area, kitchen | 10 | 11.5% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 8 | 9.2% | |
| 4 | Function area, other | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 6.9% | |
| 6 | Undetermined | 6 | 6.9% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 4.6% | |
| 8 | Other | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Outside area, other | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 29 | 33.3% |
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 Belle Glade mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 22 | 25.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 14 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 10 | 11.5% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 10 | 11.5% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 6 | 6.9% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 4.6% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 8.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Belle Glade departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $103,212 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $94,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $93,508 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $70,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Belle Glade sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 941,192 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 158,000 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 63,599 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 62,404 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 57,000 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 49,500 | 30.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 43,561 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 42,000 | 33.3 mi | |
| 1997 | Equipment and vehicle use | 41,000 | 27.2 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 39,000 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 38,100 | 21.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | 38,000 | 20.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 29,937 | 33.2 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 Florida cities with population within ±25% of Belle Glade. 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.