In 2025, fire departments serving Perryville responded to 138 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $350K 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.
Jan peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
418 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $2.7M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 54 | — | |
| 2022 | 79 | +46.3% | |
| 2023 | 73 | -7.6% | |
| 2024 | 74 | +1.4% | |
| 2025 | 138 | +86.5% |
For the 50 building fires Perryville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 69 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 16 | 23.2% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 13.0% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 5 | 7.2% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 5 | 7.2% | |
| 5 | Other | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 19 | 27.5% |
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 Perryville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 20.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 13.0% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 9 | 13.0% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 11.6% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 7 | 10.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 5.8% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 4 | 5.8% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 10.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Perryville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 96% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $350,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 4 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $43,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $30,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Perryville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,709 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,000 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 741 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 522 | 17.2 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 470 | 36.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 273 | 45.3 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 250 | 30.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 45.7 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 120 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 120 | 42.5 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 101 | 31.3 mi |
Top 6 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 Perryville. 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.