In 2025, fire departments serving Cheswick responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $69K 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 77% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
139 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $125K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 32 | — | |
| 2022 | 17 | -46.9% | |
| 2023 | 19 | +11.8% | |
| 2024 | 24 | +26.3% | |
| 2025 | 47 | +95.8% |
For the 10 building fires Cheswick departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 24 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 | 11 | 45.8% | |
| 2 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 3 | Function area, other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 12.5% |
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 Cheswick mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 41.7% | |
| 2 | Cigarette | 5 | 20.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Fireworks | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Candle | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 4.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Cheswick departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $68,800 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $56,072 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Cheswick sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,889 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 173 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 173 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 37.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 105 | 46.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 90 | 46.6 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 60 | 40.5 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 36.5 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Cheswick. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
3 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Cheswick.
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.