Two Lithium-Ion Battery Fires in Three Weeks Destroy Homes in Pasco County, Florida
Battery fires in Zephyrhills and New Port Richey destroyed two homes, killed a dog and displaced six people between Aug. 31 and Sept. 18.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Cutler Bay responded to 85 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K 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 61% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
416 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.8M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 92 | — | |
| 2022 | 95 | +3.3% | |
| 2023 | 74 | -22.1% | |
| 2024 | 70 | -5.4% | |
| 2025 | 85 | +21.4% |
For the 8 building fires Cutler Bay departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 108 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 | 26 | 24.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 16 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 10 | 9.3% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 9 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 7 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 4.6% | |
| 7 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 4 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 4 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 21 | 19.4% |
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 Cutler Bay mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 24 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 22 | 20.4% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 14 | 13.0% | |
| 4 | Cigarette | 11 | 10.2% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 8 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Candle | 4 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 14 | 13.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Cutler Bay departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 88% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $60,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $40,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $40,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Cutler Bay sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 614,669 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Natural | 68,295 | 17.7 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 62,404 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 57,000 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 49,500 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 42,000 | 48.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39,465 | 14.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 39,000 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 30,636 | 32.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 25,834 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 25,000 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 23,096 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Natural | 20,200 | 14.7 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Florida cities with population within ±25% of Cutler Bay. 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.