In 2025, fire departments serving Mars responded to 71 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Vehicle accident, general cleanup lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 80% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
329 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $137K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 65 | — | |
| 2022 | 57 | -12.3% | |
| 2023 | 67 | +17.5% | |
| 2024 | 69 | +3.0% | |
| 2025 | 71 | +2.9% |
For the 16 building fires Mars departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 32 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 | 6 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Storage area, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 25.0% |
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 Mars mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 37.5% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Chemical reaction | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Incendiary device | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 9.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Mars departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $16,600 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mars sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,758 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 342 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 173 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 21.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 39.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 47 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 29.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 41 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 38 | 35.0 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Mars. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Mars.
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.