In 2025, fire departments serving Indian Head responded to 174 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $125K 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 63% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,032 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 178 | — | |
| 2022 | 270 | +51.7% | |
| 2023 | 218 | -19.3% | |
| 2024 | 192 | -11.9% | |
| 2025 | 174 | -9.4% |
For the 16 building fires Indian Head departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 95 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 | 26 | 27.4% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 17 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 12.6% | |
| 4 | Other | 9 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Function area, other | 6 | 6.3% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 9.5% |
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 Indian Head mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 41 | 43.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 21 | 22.1% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 14 | 14.7% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 9 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 7 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 1.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Indian Head departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $25,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $4,400 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | 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. Indian Head sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,222 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 640 | 13.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 431 | 13.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 344 | 24.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 318 | 14.1 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 14.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 225 | 47.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 25.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 157 | 40.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 150 | 15.4 mi |
Top 10 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Indian Head. 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.