In 2025, fire departments serving Clifton responded to 18 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Biological hazard, confirmed or suspected lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 72% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
80 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $26K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 12 | — | |
| 2022 | 13 | +8.3% | |
| 2023 | 26 | +100.0% | |
| 2024 | 11 | -57.7% | |
| 2025 | 18 | +63.6% |
For the 0 building fires Clifton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 7 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 | 2 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 5 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 6 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 14.3% |
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 Clifton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 3 | 42.9% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 2 | 28.6% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 14.3% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Clifton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,991 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 770 | 42.2 mi | |
| 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 657 | 43.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 515 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 495 | 43.8 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 250 | 47.1 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 215 | 33.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 205 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 32.4 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 177 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 161 | 28.1 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 156 | 35.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 124 | 27.1 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04428 | 80 |
Six Maine cities with population within ±25% of Clifton. 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.