In 2025, fire departments serving Friedens responded to 24 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 46% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
163 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 33 | — | |
| 2022 | 51 | +54.5% | |
| 2023 | 33 | -35.3% | |
| 2024 | 22 | -33.3% | |
| 2025 | 24 | +9.1% |
For the 3 building fires Friedens departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 41 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 | 15 | 36.6% | |
| 2 | Storage area, other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 3 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Interior stairway or ramp | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 19.5% |
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 Friedens mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 5 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Munitions | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 19.5% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Friedens sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,076 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 888 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 755 | 18.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 480 | 19.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Smoking | 394 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 345 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 300 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 297 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2017 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 295 | 39.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 24.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 173 | 24.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 105 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 90 | 7.8 mi |
Top 5 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 Friedens. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Friedens.
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.