In 2025, fire departments serving Danbury responded to 26 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $80K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 81% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
137 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $166K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 23 | +15.0% | |
| 2023 | 28 | +21.7% | |
| 2024 | 40 | +42.9% | |
| 2025 | 26 | -35.0% |
For the 0 building fires Danbury departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 17 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 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 23.5% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 17.6% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 17.6% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 9 | Undetermined | 1 | 5.9% |
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 Danbury mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 17.6% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 9 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 5.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Danbury departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $80,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $13,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Danbury sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,822 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 329 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 34.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 137 | 30.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 16.8 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 72 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 24.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 54 | 19.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 47 | 39.0 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 New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Danbury. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Danbury.
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.