In 2025, fire departments serving Middlebury responded to 88 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $450K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
378 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $2.8M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 77 | — | |
| 2022 | 70 | -9.1% | |
| 2023 | 58 | -17.1% | |
| 2024 | 85 | +46.6% | |
| 2025 | 88 | +3.5% |
For the 17 building fires Middlebury departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 99 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 | 23 | 23.2% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 15 | 15.2% | |
| 3 | Other | 10 | 10.1% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 8.1% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 20 | 20.2% |
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 Middlebury mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 38 | 38.4% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 15 | 15.2% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 8 | 8.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 12.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Middlebury departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $450,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $220,000 | Outside storage fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $4,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Middlebury sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 10 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 350 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 154 | 36.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Fireworks | 40 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 35 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 25 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 22 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15 | 40.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 15 | 10.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 12 | 8.6 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 12 | 41.7 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 Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Middlebury. 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.