In 2025, fire departments serving Poolesville responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 68% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
162 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $320K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 26 | — | |
| 2022 | 33 | +26.9% | |
| 2023 | 32 | -3.0% | |
| 2024 | 33 | +3.1% | |
| 2025 | 38 | +15.2% |
For the 1 building fires Poolesville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 28 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 | 7 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 6 | Other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 1 | 3.6% |
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 Poolesville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 39.3% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 4 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Poolesville departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Poolesville sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 8,334 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Other causes | 1,989 | 48.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 48.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 640 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 6.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 431 | 37.0 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 405 | 23.0 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 23.6 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 350 | 25.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 318 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 300 | 49.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 38.5 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 Poolesville. 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.