In 2025, fire departments serving North Versailles responded to 90 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $875K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 63% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
712 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 131 | — | |
| 2022 | 162 | +23.7% | |
| 2023 | 193 | +19.1% | |
| 2024 | 136 | -29.5% | |
| 2025 | 90 | -33.8% |
For the 16 building fires North Versailles departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 94 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 | 20 | 21.3% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 17 | 18.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 13 | 13.8% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 6.4% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 17 | 18.1% |
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 North Versailles mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 38 | 40.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 11 | 11.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 8 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 9.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by North Versailles departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $874,730 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $191,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $64,200 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. North Versailles sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,747 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Smoking | 394 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 173 | 29.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 42.5 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 105 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 90 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 60 | 30.1 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 36 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 28.7 mi |
Top 10 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 North Versailles. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in North Versailles.
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.