In 2025, fire departments serving Mountain Brook responded to 48 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 85% of all calls.
May peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
239 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $30K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 64 | — | |
| 2022 | 35 | -45.3% | |
| 2023 | 43 | +22.9% | |
| 2024 | 49 | +14.0% | |
| 2025 | 48 | -2.0% |
For the 7 building fires Mountain Brook departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 4 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 | Other | 1 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 1 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 25.0% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 1 | 25.0% |
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 Mountain Brook mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 2 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 1 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 25.0% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mountain Brook sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 23,866 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 2,950 | 20.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,784 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 1,800 | 27.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,540 | 13.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,308 | 29.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 1,100 | 11.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,066 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 988 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 890 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Equipment and vehicle use | 800 | 50.0 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 700 | 21.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 660 | 23.2 mi |
Top 9 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Alabama cities with population within ±25% of Mountain Brook. 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.