In 2025, fire departments serving Greencastle responded to 76 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 68% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
382 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 100 | — | |
| 2022 | 63 | -37.0% | |
| 2023 | 73 | +15.9% | |
| 2024 | 70 | -4.1% | |
| 2025 | 76 | +8.6% |
For the 28 building fires Greencastle departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 51 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 | 10 | 19.6% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 13.7% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Other | 4 | 7.8% | |
| 5 | Storage area, other | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - 5+ persons; including barrack/dormitory | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 15 | 29.4% |
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 Greencastle mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 27.5% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 15.7% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 13.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 5 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Lightning | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 10 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 7.8% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Greencastle sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,893 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 13.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 888 | 49.9 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 405 | 46.2 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 47.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 350 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 345 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 300 | 39.4 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 145 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 105 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 76 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 72 | 29.9 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 Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Greencastle. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Greencastle.
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.