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.
FL
In 2025, fire departments serving Pinecrest responded to 47 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
287 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 58 | — | |
| 2022 | 56 | -3.4% | |
| 2023 | 70 | +25.0% | |
| 2024 | 56 | -20.0% | |
| 2025 | 47 | -16.1% |
For the 1 building fires Pinecrest departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 57 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 | 9 | 15.8% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 14.0% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 14.0% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 5 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 9 | Roof surface: exterior | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 14.0% |
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 Pinecrest mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arcing | 21 | 36.8% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 9 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 12.3% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 10.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Pinecrest departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Pinecrest sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 850,690 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 158,000 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 68,295 | 14.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 62,404 | 44.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 57,000 | 43.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 49,500 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 42,000 | 43.4 mi | |
| 1997 | Equipment and vehicle use | 41,000 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39,465 | 18.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 39,000 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 30,636 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 29,937 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Equipment and vehicle use | 25,834 | 36.3 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 Florida cities with population within ±25% of Pinecrest. 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.