In 2025, fire departments serving Randallstown responded to 131 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 62% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
873 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $776K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 226 | — | |
| 2022 | 187 | -17.3% | |
| 2023 | 178 | -4.8% | |
| 2024 | 151 | -15.2% | |
| 2025 | 131 | -13.2% |
For the 7 building fires Randallstown departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 37 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 | 24.3% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 18.9% | |
| 3 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 9 | Other | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Chute; laundry or mail, excluding trash chutes | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 13.5% |
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 Randallstown mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 51.4% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Fireworks | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 8.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Randallstown departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $93,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Randallstown sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,308 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 522 | 39.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 500 | 24.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 30.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 431 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 408 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 150 | 49.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 76 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 46.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 20.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 19.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 41.4 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 Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Randallstown. 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.