In 2025, fire departments serving Parkville responded to 340 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K 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 59% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,393 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $925K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 253 | — | |
| 2022 | 225 | -11.1% | |
| 2023 | 210 | -6.7% | |
| 2024 | 365 | +73.8% | |
| 2025 | 340 | -6.8% |
For the 7 building fires Parkville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 91 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 | 23 | 25.3% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 14 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Other | 7 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 5 | 5.5% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Structural area, other | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 19 | 20.9% |
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 Parkville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 41 | 45.1% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 9 | 9.9% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 5 | 5.5% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 7.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Parkville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 89% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $110,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $70,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $20,000 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Parkville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,874 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 522 | 25.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 26.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 28.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 150 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 28.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 35.4 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 67 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 32.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 48 | 36.9 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Parkville. 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.