In 2025, fire departments serving Jessup responded to 24 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500 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 63% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
183 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $68K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 60 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | -46.7% | |
| 2023 | 29 | -9.4% | |
| 2024 | 38 | +31.0% | |
| 2025 | 24 | -36.8% |
For the 6 building fires Jessup departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 30 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 | 13 | 43.3% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 5 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 13.3% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 6 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 1 | 3.3% |
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 Jessup mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 53.3% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Jessup departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Jessup sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,642 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 522 | 39.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 8.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 27.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 431 | 30.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 344 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 150 | 38.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 76 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 67 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 8.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 20.8 mi |
Top 2 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 Jessup. 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.