Two Lithium-Ion Battery Fires in Three Weeks Destroy Homes in Pasco County, Florida
Battery fires in Zephyrhills and New Port Richey destroyed two homes, killed a dog and displaced six people between Aug. 31 and Sept. 18.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Neptune Beach responded to 16 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Hazardous condition, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 50% of all calls.
May peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
74 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 15 | — | |
| 2022 | 22 | +46.7% | |
| 2023 | 12 | -45.5% | |
| 2024 | 9 | -25.0% | |
| 2025 | 16 | +77.8% |
For the 1 building fires Neptune Beach departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 23 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 | 5 | 21.7% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 5 | 21.7% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 13.0% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 2 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 8.7% | |
| 6 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Closet | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 4.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 4.3% |
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 Neptune Beach mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 23 | 100.0% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Neptune Beach sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 92,468 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Natural | 26,900 | 48.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 16,100 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 7,800 | 45.2 mi | |
| 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7,145 | 38.1 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 6,800 | 31.7 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 4,500 | 33.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 2,551 | 39.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,258 | 36.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,027 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 1,803 | 34.4 mi | |
| 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,365 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 1,200 | 42.2 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 Florida cities with population within ±25% of Neptune Beach. 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.