In 2025, fire departments serving Pembroke responded to 72 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $30K 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 56% of all calls.
May peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
312 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $110K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 50 | — | |
| 2022 | 66 | +32.0% | |
| 2023 | 45 | -31.8% | |
| 2024 | 79 | +75.6% | |
| 2025 | 72 | -8.9% |
For the 15 building fires Pembroke departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 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 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 17.8% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 15.6% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Office | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Outside area, other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 10 | Sales area, showroom (exclude display window) | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 15.6% |
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 Pembroke mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 24.4% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 20.0% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 15.6% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 6 | 13.3% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 8.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Pembroke departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $14,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $8,500 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $40 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Pembroke sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,114 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 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 19.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 48.3 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 New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Pembroke. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Pembroke.
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.