In 2025, fire departments serving Mill Creek responded to 16 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K 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 100% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
97 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $150K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 15 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | +33.3% | |
| 2023 | 24 | +20.0% | |
| 2024 | 22 | -8.3% | |
| 2025 | 16 | -27.3% |
For the 9 building fires Mill Creek departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 7 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 | Undetermined | 2 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Other | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 1 | 14.3% |
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 Mill Creek mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 4 | 57.1% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 28.6% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 14.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Mill Creek departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mill Creek sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,539 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 780 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 342 | 12.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 37.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 85 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 38.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 65 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 59 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 54 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 49 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 49 | 47.6 mi |
Top 3 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 Mill Creek. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Mill Creek.
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.