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.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Perry responded to 201 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 48% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,280 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $5.0M cumulative property loss. 3 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 199 | — | |
| 2022 | 262 | +31.7% | |
| 2023 | 298 | +13.7% | |
| 2024 | 320 | +7.4% | |
| 2025 | 201 | -37.2% |
For the 11 building fires Perry departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 391 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 | 146 | 37.3% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 39 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 35 | 9.0% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 29 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 27 | 6.9% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 13 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 12 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Other | 10 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Wildland, woods | 10 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 64 | 16.4% |
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 Perry mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 234 | 59.8% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 35 | 9.0% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 20 | 5.1% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 19 | 4.9% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 14 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 10 | 2.6% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 9 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 9 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 8 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 6 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 27 | 6.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Perry departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 87% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $25,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $20,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $11,600 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Perry sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 96,392 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Natural | 57,200 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 20,000 | 34.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | 4,100 | 24.2 mi | |
| 1992 | Natural | 2,200 | 15.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 2,065 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 1,372 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,154 | 28.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,050 | 13.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 1,032 | 29.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 602 | 47.6 mi | |
| 1996 | Equipment and vehicle use | 520 | 3.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 482 | 15.6 mi |
Top 7 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 Perry. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Perry.
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.