In 2025, fire departments serving Henniker responded to 60 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $2.0M 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 63% of all calls.
Aug peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
321 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.8M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 63 | — | |
| 2022 | 66 | +4.8% | |
| 2023 | 51 | -22.7% | |
| 2024 | 81 | +58.8% | |
| 2025 | 60 | -25.9% |
For the 18 building fires Henniker departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 30 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 | Undetermined | 13 | 43.3% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 13.3% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 3 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Other | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Machinery room or area; elevator machinery room | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Structural area, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 6.7% |
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 Henniker mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 15 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Henniker departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2,000,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $21,600 | Fire in portable building, fixed location | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Henniker sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,651 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 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 47.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 15.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 47.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 137 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 44.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 23.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 11.2 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 New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Henniker. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Henniker.
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.