In 2025, fire departments serving Hooksett responded to 124 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $10K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 48% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
560 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $275K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 86 | — | |
| 2022 | 115 | +33.7% | |
| 2023 | 120 | +4.3% | |
| 2024 | 115 | -4.2% | |
| 2025 | 124 | +7.8% |
For the 10 building fires Hooksett departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 86 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 | 17 | 19.8% | |
| 2 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 14 | 16.3% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 8.1% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 6 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 5 | 5.8% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 8 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Undetermined | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 18 | 20.9% |
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 Hooksett mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 18.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 12 | 14.0% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 12 | 14.0% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 9 | 10.5% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 8.1% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 8.1% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 7.0% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 9 | Sunlight | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 9.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hooksett departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 96% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $4,500 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $2,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hooksett sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,971 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 | 41.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 41.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 41.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 26.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 46.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 41.1 mi |
Top 3 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 Hooksett. 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.