In 2025, fire departments serving Charlotte Hall responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $175K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Fires in structures other than in a building lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 74% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
330 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $959K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 61 | — | |
| 2022 | 91 | +49.2% | |
| 2023 | 61 | -33.0% | |
| 2024 | 71 | +16.4% | |
| 2025 | 46 | -35.2% |
For the 7 building fires Charlotte Hall departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 43 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 | 9 | 20.9% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 8 | 18.6% | |
| 3 | Other | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Interior stairway or ramp | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 14 | 32.6% |
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 Charlotte Hall mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 22 | 51.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 8 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Match | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 4.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Charlotte Hall departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $175,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Charlotte Hall sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 32,771 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 3,208 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,910 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,124 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,066 | 43.8 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,800 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,756 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,700 | 46.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,596 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,580 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,367 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,238 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,057 | 43.2 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 Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Charlotte Hall. 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.