In 2025, fire departments serving Oxford responded to 129 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $400K 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 64% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
567 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.5M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 125 | — | |
| 2022 | 108 | -13.6% | |
| 2023 | 134 | +24.1% | |
| 2024 | 71 | -47.0% | |
| 2025 | 129 | +81.7% |
For the 46 building fires Oxford departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 101 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 | 15 | 14.9% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 9 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 8 | 7.9% | |
| 6 | Exterior, exposed surface | 6 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Other | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 28 | 27.7% |
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 Oxford mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 44 | 43.6% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 17 | 16.8% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 9 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 4.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oxford departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $400,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $325,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $68,500 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $60,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $18,250 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $16,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $12,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oxford sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,264 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 28.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 28.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 36.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 28.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 27.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 28.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 28.1 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Recreation and ceremony | 94 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 27.8 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 Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Oxford. 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.