In 2025, fire departments serving Phillipston responded to 36 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Accident, potential accident, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 81% of all calls.
Nov peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
185 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $570K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | +6.7% | |
| 2023 | 51 | +59.4% | |
| 2024 | 36 | -29.4% | |
| 2025 | 36 | +0.0% |
For the 0 building fires Phillipston departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 43 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 | 12 | 27.9% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 11 | 25.6% | |
| 3 | Other | 5 | 11.6% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 9.3% |
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 Phillipston mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 18.6% | |
| 2 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 8 | 18.6% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 7 | 16.3% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 4 | 9.3% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 7.0% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 2 | 4.7% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 7.0% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Phillipston sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,012 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 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 27.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 25.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 35.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 25.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 5.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 25.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 25.0 mi |
Top 3 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 Phillipston. 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.