In 2025, fire departments serving Ossipee responded to 77 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $36K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 60% of all calls.
Sep peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
339 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $730K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 51 | — | |
| 2022 | 42 | -17.6% | |
| 2023 | 54 | +28.6% | |
| 2024 | 115 | +113.0% | |
| 2025 | 77 | -33.0% |
For the 10 building fires Ossipee departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 59 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 | Undetermined | 16 | 27.1% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 10.2% | |
| 5 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 4 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 4 | 6.8% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Other | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 11.9% |
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 Ossipee mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 29 | 49.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 4 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 4 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Other static discharge | 2 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 13.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Ossipee departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $36,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $35,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $4,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $300 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Ossipee sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,118 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 | 19.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 34.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 6.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 236 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 139 | 23.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 28.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 72 | 37.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 42.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 54 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 13.2 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 New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Ossipee. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Ossipee.
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.