In 2025, fire departments serving Dixfield responded to 36 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $38K 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 86% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
152 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $89K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 28 | — | |
| 2022 | 26 | -7.1% | |
| 2023 | 31 | +19.2% | |
| 2024 | 31 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 36 | +16.1% |
For the 12 building fires Dixfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 35 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 14.3% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Corridor, mall | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 37.1% |
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 Dixfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 34.3% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 5 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 8.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Dixfield departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $38,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $14,700 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Dixfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 867 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 100 | 45.8 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 64 | 15.0 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 57 | 40.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 26.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 43 | 28.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 24.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 12.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39 | 25.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 33 | 14.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 32 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Equipment and vehicle use | 32 | 44.6 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Maine cities with population within ±25% of Dixfield. 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.