In 2025, fire departments serving Milford responded to 29 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $10K 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 58% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
176 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $46K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 26 | — | |
| 2022 | 29 | +11.5% | |
| 2023 | 42 | +44.8% | |
| 2024 | 50 | +19.0% | |
| 2025 | 29 | -42.0% |
For the 5 building fires Milford departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 8 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 | 2 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 5 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 6 | Exterior, exposed surface | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 1 | 12.5% |
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 Milford mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 3 | 37.5% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 12.5% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 12.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Milford departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $1 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Milford sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,049 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 770 | 48.6 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 215 | 40.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 205 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 200 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 161 | 33.7 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 156 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 124 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 120 | 36.7 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 105 | 34.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 100 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 97 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 85 | 42.0 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 Maine cities with population within ±25% of Milford. 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.