In 2025, fire departments serving East Hampton responded to 78 fire and hazmat incidents . 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 64% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
383 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 60 | — | |
| 2022 | 71 | +18.3% | |
| 2023 | 94 | +32.4% | |
| 2024 | 80 | -14.9% | |
| 2025 | 78 | -2.5% |
For the 6 building fires East Hampton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 46 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 | Outside area, other | 6 | 13.0% | |
| 2 | Structural area, other | 5 | 10.9% | |
| 3 | Wall surface: exterior | 5 | 10.9% | |
| 4 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Undetermined | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 10 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 28.3% |
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 East Hampton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 18 | 39.1% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 17.4% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Chemical reaction | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Candle | 1 | 2.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. East Hampton sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 9,212 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,050 | 30.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,000 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 992 | 38.1 mi | |
| 1997 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 361 | 43.6 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 250 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 152 | 30.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 38.5 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 48.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 96 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Recreation and ceremony | 94 | 49.9 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six New York cities with population within ±25% of East Hampton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in East Hampton.
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.