In 2025, fire departments serving Northfield responded to 100 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $750K 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 63% of all calls.
Sep peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
355 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $2.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 46 | — | |
| 2022 | 69 | +50.0% | |
| 2023 | 62 | -10.1% | |
| 2024 | 78 | +25.8% | |
| 2025 | 100 | +28.2% |
For the 22 building fires Northfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 63 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 11 | 17.5% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 7 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 5 | 7.9% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 6.3% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 14 | 22.2% |
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 Northfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 17 | 27.0% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 13 | 20.6% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 14.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Northfield departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $750,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Northfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,080 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 329 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 30.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 35.1 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 139 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 137 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 2.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 72 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 13.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 54 | 30.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 26.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 46 | 35.7 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Northfield. 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.