In 2025, fire departments serving Lowville responded to 82 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
347 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 56 | — | |
| 2022 | 47 | -16.1% | |
| 2023 | 81 | +72.3% | |
| 2024 | 81 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 82 | +1.2% |
For the 6 building fires Lowville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 50 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 | 9 | 18.0% | |
| 2 | Other | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 3 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 17 | 34.0% |
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 Lowville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 17 | 34.0% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 10 | 20.0% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 5 | Candle | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 10.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Lowville departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building or structure weakened or collapsed | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building or structure weakened or collapsed | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lowville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 724 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Smoking | 75 | 28.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 68 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 66 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 65 | 40.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 38.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 39 | 20.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 20.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Smoking | 30 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 18.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 29 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Equipment and vehicle use | 26 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2002 | Equipment and vehicle use | 23 | 21.6 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 New York cities with population within ±25% of Lowville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Lowville.
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.