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.
FL
In 2025, fire departments serving Odessa responded to 88 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $225K 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 51% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
506 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 102 | — | |
| 2022 | 89 | -12.7% | |
| 2023 | 104 | +16.9% | |
| 2024 | 123 | +18.3% | |
| 2025 | 88 | -28.5% |
For the 3 building fires Odessa 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 | 16 | 17.0% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 12.8% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 10 | 10.6% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 10 | 10.6% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 9.6% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 6.4% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 19 | 20.2% |
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 Odessa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 29 | 30.9% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 11 | 11.7% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 8 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 8 | 8.5% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Molten, hot material | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 15 | 16.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Odessa departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $225,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $15,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $13,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Odessa sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 48,475 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 10,119 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 3,000 | 29.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,507 | 44.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 2,500 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,275 | 6.7 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,189 | 40.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 39.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 2,000 | 22.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,939 | 39.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,775 | 39.3 mi | |
| 1997 | Natural | 1,700 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 1,700 | 44.8 mi |
Top 6 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 Odessa. 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.