In 2025, fire departments serving Mastic responded to 91 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
559 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 80 | — | |
| 2022 | 136 | +70.0% | |
| 2023 | 127 | -6.6% | |
| 2024 | 125 | -1.6% | |
| 2025 | 91 | -27.2% |
For the 11 building fires Mastic departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 42 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 | Function area, other | 5 | 11.9% | |
| 2 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 5 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Wall surface: exterior | 5 | 11.9% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 5 | 11.9% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 21.4% |
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 Mastic mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 24 | 57.1% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 8 | 19.0% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Candle | 1 | 2.4% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mastic sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 9,202 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,050 | 11.8 mi | |
| 1995 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,000 | 5.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 992 | 5.0 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 250 | 5.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 175 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 152 | 11.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 125 | 18.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 125 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 5.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 5.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 100 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 30.5 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 New York cities with population within ±25% of Mastic. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Mastic.
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.