In 2025, fire departments serving Felton responded to 13 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 100% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
101 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $416K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 17 | — | |
| 2022 | 36 | +111.8% | |
| 2023 | 17 | -52.8% | |
| 2024 | 18 | +5.9% | |
| 2025 | 13 | -27.8% |
For the 5 building fires Felton 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 | Outside area, other | 3 | 17.6% | |
| 2 | Other | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 5 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Function area, other | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 9 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 11.8% |
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 Felton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 8 | 47.1% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 17.6% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 11.8% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 1 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 5.9% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Felton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,138 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 935 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 741 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 522 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 27.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 74 | 47.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 59 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 55 | 40.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 49 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 48 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Smoking | 48 | 44.2 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 Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Felton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Felton.
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.