In 2025, fire departments serving Harahan responded to 69 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $24K building blaze. 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 59% of all calls.
Dec peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
320 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $77K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 62 | — | |
| 2022 | 65 | +4.8% | |
| 2023 | 60 | -7.7% | |
| 2024 | 64 | +6.7% | |
| 2025 | 69 | +7.8% |
For the 7 building fires Harahan departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 94 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 | 16 | 17.0% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 13.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 8 | 8.5% | |
| 5 | Other | 7 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 22 | 23.4% |
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 Harahan mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 41 | 43.6% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 9 | 9.6% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 7.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Match | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 12.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Harahan departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $23,600 | Water vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $2,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $400 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $250 | Fire in portable building, fixed location | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $200 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $200 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Harahan sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 19,270 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,922 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,600 | 49.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 1,507 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 1,500 | 20.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,200 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 893 | 9.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | 886 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 800 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 798 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 725 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 641 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 614 | 45.8 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 Louisiana cities with population within ±25% of Harahan. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Harahan.
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.