In 2025, fire departments serving Medfield responded to 170 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $900K 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 75% of all calls.
Dec peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
748 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 137 | — | |
| 2022 | 134 | -2.2% | |
| 2023 | 173 | +29.1% | |
| 2024 | 134 | -22.5% | |
| 2025 | 170 | +26.9% |
For the 8 building fires Medfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 61 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 | 8 | 13.1% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 13.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 11.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 6 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Undetermined | 4 | 6.6% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 4.9% | |
| 9 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 4.9% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 21.3% |
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 Medfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 21 | 34.4% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 12 | 19.7% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 8.2% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 6.6% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 3 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 9.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Medfield departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $900,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $4,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,300 | Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Medfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,722 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 27.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 27.5 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 9.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 27.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 27.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 28.2 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 33.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 27.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 27.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 26.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 28.7 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 Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Medfield. 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.