In 2025, fire departments serving Hillsdale responded to 20 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 80% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
135 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 25 | +25.0% | |
| 2023 | 42 | +68.0% | |
| 2024 | 28 | -33.3% | |
| 2025 | 20 | -28.6% |
For the 4 building fires Hillsdale departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 20 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 | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 2 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Function area, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Structural area, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 10 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 30.0% |
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 Hillsdale mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 35.0% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Candle | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 5.0% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hillsdale sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 10,037 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Smoking | 2,855 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,300 | 38.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 998 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Smoking | 866 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Smoking | 550 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 384 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | 285 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 272 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 240 | 47.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 180 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 180 | 44.8 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 New York cities with population within ±25% of Hillsdale. 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.