Home› Texas› Jamaica Beach
2025 Annual Fire Report

Fires in Jamaica Beach, Texas

In 2025, fire departments serving Jamaica Beach responded to 24 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.

Updated Sep 27, 2026 Grade C- Peak yr 2023 Galveston County 1,103 residents 1 reporting departments 156 5-yr
Total incidents
24
-33.3% vs 2024
Building fires
2
Residential 50% Other 50%
Property loss
$150K
$100K structure · $50K contents
Deaths & injuries
0 / 0
0 civilian deaths · 0 civ injuries · 0 firefighter injuries
01 The mix

What kinds of fires happen here?

Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.

24
Total Incidents
Power line down 5 20.8%
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) 4 16.7%
Trash or rubbish fire, contained 3 12.5%
Building fires 2 8.3%
Overheated motor 2 8.3%
All other categories 8 33.3%
02 Seasonality

When do fires happen?

Jun peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.

Jan 1
Feb 1
Mar 4
Apr 4
May 4
Jun 6
Jul 0
Aug 0
Sep 2
Oct 1
Nov 1
Dec 0
Fewer
More
2b Five-year trend

Year over year in Jamaica Beach

156 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.2M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.

YearIncidentsYoY 
2021 28 —
2022 32 +14.3%
2023 36 +12.5%
2024 36 +0.0%
2025 24 -33.3%
03 Cause of ignition

What sparks building fires?

For the 2 building fires Jamaica Beach departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.

Unintentional
40%
2
Cause undetermined
20%
1
Intentional / arson
40%
2
Equipment / heat source failure
0%
0
Under investigation
0%
0
Act of nature (lightning)
0%
0
3b Where fires start

Where do fires start in Jamaica Beach?

NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 34 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 originCountShare 
1 Outside area, other 7 20.6%
2 Other 6 17.6%
3 Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch 4 11.8%
4 Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste 3 8.8%
5 Cooking area, kitchen 1 2.9%
6 Laundry area, wash house (laundry) 1 2.9%
7 Vehicle storage area; garage, carport 1 2.9%
8 Service facilities, other 1 2.9%
9 Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC 1 2.9%
10 Heating room or area, water heater area 1 2.9%
11 All other areas 8 23.5%
3c What ignited it

What actually ignited the fire?

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 Jamaica Beach mix.

#Heat sourceCountShare 
1 Hot ember or ash 10 29.4%
2 Hot or smoldering object, other 6 17.6%
3 Arcing 4 11.8%
4 Cigarette lighter 4 11.8%
5 Heat from powered equipment, other 3 8.8%
6 Heat source: other 2 5.9%
7 Undetermined 2 5.9%
8 Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment 1 2.9%
9 Explosive, fireworks, other 1 2.9%
10 Heat from other open flame or smoking materials 1 2.9%
04 The biggest fires

1 fires · $100K in losses

Largest single-incident property losses reported by Jamaica Beach departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.

# Property loss Type Severity Status
1 $100,000 Building fires Significant Investigated
05 How Jamaica Beach compares

Jamaica Beach vs Texas vs the nation

Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Jamaica Beach sits above the national average for incidents per resident.

21.76
Incidents per 1,000 residents
Jamaica Beach
21.76
TX avg
7.68
US avg
7.48
1.81
Building fires per 1,000 residents
Jamaica Beach
1.81
TX avg
0.7
US avg
0.85
0
Civilian fire deaths per million
Jamaica Beach
0
TX avg
5.4
US avg
5.9
5c Wildfires nearby

Wildfires within 50 mi of Jamaica Beach

Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 64,759 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.

50 mi radius
YearCauseAcresDistance 
2007 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 5,976 46.2 mi
2015 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 5,260 48.2 mi
2012 Natural 5,021 39.3 mi
2002 Natural 4,028 14.0 mi
2020 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 4,016 45.2 mi
2017 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 3,888 46.7 mi
2017 Arson/incendiarism 3,741 33.9 mi
2006 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 2,982 40.7 mi
2008 Natural 2,682 42.9 mi
1997 Natural 2,550 16.4 mi
2014 Natural 2,254 42.4 mi
2014 Natural 2,250 43.1 mi
5d Top ZIPs

Where in Jamaica Beach do fires concentrate?

Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.

#ZIP5-yr incidents 
1 77550 145
2 77554 11
5e Peer cities

Cities similar to Jamaica Beach

Six Texas cities with population within ±25% of Jamaica Beach. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.

06 First responders

Who responds in Jamaica Beach?

1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Jamaica Beach.

Jamaica Beach FD
5355 Jamaica Beach
FDID HA401
07 Stay prepared

Before the next Red Flag day.

A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.

About this data

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.