In 2025, fire departments serving Freeport responded to 84 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $3K 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 55% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
562 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.4M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 102 | — | |
| 2022 | 117 | +14.7% | |
| 2023 | 120 | +2.6% | |
| 2024 | 139 | +15.8% | |
| 2025 | 84 | -39.6% |
For the 4 building fires Freeport departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 63 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 | 17 | 27.0% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 20.6% | |
| 3 | Equipment or service area, other | 4 | 6.3% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 6.3% | |
| 5 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Other | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 19.0% |
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 Freeport mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 25.4% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 12 | 19.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 15.9% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 12.7% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Radiated heat from another fire | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 3.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Freeport departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Freeport sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,265 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 236 | 18.4 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 57 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 42 | 26.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39 | 24.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 33 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 33 | 35.4 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 Maine cities with population within ±25% of Freeport. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Freeport.
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.