In 2025, fire departments serving Brooklyn Heights responded to 20 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 60% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
146 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 28 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | -28.6% | |
| 2023 | 29 | +45.0% | |
| 2024 | 49 | +69.0% | |
| 2025 | 20 | -59.2% |
For the 1 building fires Brooklyn Heights departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 42 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 | 12 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 19.0% |
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 Brooklyn Heights mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 9.5% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Cigarette | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 11.9% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Brooklyn Heights sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 8 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 545 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 24.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 25 | 40.4 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 | 48.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 10 | 43.8 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 Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Brooklyn Heights. 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.