In 2025, fire departments serving Litchfield responded to 48 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 69% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
311 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 61 | — | |
| 2022 | 73 | +19.7% | |
| 2023 | 81 | +11.0% | |
| 2024 | 48 | -40.7% | |
| 2025 | 48 | +0.0% |
For the 18 building fires Litchfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 27 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 | 11 | 40.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 3.7% |
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 Litchfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 59.3% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 5 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Match | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Conducted heat from another fire | 1 | 3.7% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Litchfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,064 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 236 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 77 | 48.4 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 64 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 57 | 17.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 48 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 42 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 21.8 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39 | 15.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 35 | 49.8 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04350 | 311 |
Six Maine cities with population within ±25% of Litchfield. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Litchfield.
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.