In 2025, fire departments serving Jericho responded to 23 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K 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 70% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
163 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $376K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30 | — | |
| 2022 | 34 | +13.3% | |
| 2023 | 31 | -8.8% | |
| 2024 | 45 | +45.2% | |
| 2025 | 23 | -48.9% |
For the 4 building fires Jericho departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 40 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 | Outside area, other | 8 | 20.0% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 17.5% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 6 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Other | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 17.5% |
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 Jericho mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 15.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 6 | 15.0% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 7.5% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 5.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 20.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Jericho departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $1,000 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Jericho sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,189 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 547 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 330 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 48.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Recreation and ceremony | 92 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 82 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 80 | 25.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 77 | 44.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Smoking | 75 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 65 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | 60 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 55 | 49.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 52 | 37.2 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 Vermont cities with population within ±25% of Jericho. 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.