In 2025, fire departments serving Pittsville responded to 26 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K 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 81% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
168 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.8M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 45 | +95.7% | |
| 2023 | 42 | -6.7% | |
| 2024 | 32 | -23.8% | |
| 2025 | 26 | -18.8% |
For the 12 building fires Pittsville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 27 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 | 4 | 14.8% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Storage area, other | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 18.5% |
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 Pittsville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 6 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 18.5% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Radiated heat from another fire | 2 | 7.4% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 3.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 7.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Pittsville departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Pittsville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 7,585 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 3,410 | 31.5 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 553 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 384 | 25.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 337 | 28.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 300 | 28.6 mi | |
| 1998 | Recreation and ceremony | 250 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Recreation and ceremony | 234 | 25.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Smoking | 187 | 22.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 170 | 20.1 mi | |
| 1992 | Equipment and vehicle use | 161 | 34.8 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 160 | 20.4 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 159 | 34.4 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 Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Pittsville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Pittsville.
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.