In 2025, fire departments serving Hardwick responded to 33 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 85% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
167 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $937K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 34 | — | |
| 2022 | 36 | +5.9% | |
| 2023 | 22 | -38.9% | |
| 2024 | 42 | +90.9% | |
| 2025 | 33 | -21.4% |
For the 11 building fires Hardwick departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 39 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 15.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 5 | Other | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Structural area, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 10 | Corridor, mall | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 20.5% |
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 Hardwick mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 18 | 46.2% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 5.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hardwick departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $40,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $24,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $6,000 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hardwick sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,157 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 32.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 17.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 30.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 17.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Recreation and ceremony | 94 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 30.7 mi |
Top 7 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Hardwick. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.