In 2025, fire departments serving Chevy Chase responded to 106 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $8K building blaze. 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 77% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
533 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $703K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 99 | — | |
| 2022 | 135 | +36.4% | |
| 2023 | 92 | -31.9% | |
| 2024 | 101 | +9.8% | |
| 2025 | 106 | +5.0% |
For the 3 building fires Chevy Chase departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 67 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 | 14 | 20.9% | |
| 2 | Other | 8 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Function area, other | 5 | 7.5% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 5 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Closet | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 20 | 29.9% |
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 Chevy Chase mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 23.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 13.4% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 9 | 13.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 7.5% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 6.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 3 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 10.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Chevy Chase departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Chevy Chase sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,922 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 | 640 | 35.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 18.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 14.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 431 | 19.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 36.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 405 | 42.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 42.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 350 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 344 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 318 | 32.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 34.1 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 45.1 mi |
Top 9 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 Chevy Chase. 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.