In 2025, fire departments serving Sandy Lake responded to 15 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 87% of all calls.
May peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
108 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $6K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30 | — | |
| 2022 | 27 | -10.0% | |
| 2023 | 22 | -18.5% | |
| 2024 | 14 | -36.4% | |
| 2025 | 15 | +7.1% |
For the 9 building fires Sandy Lake departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 16 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 | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 9 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 10 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 6.2% |
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 Sandy Lake mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 5 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 6.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sandy Lake sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,487 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 780 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 342 | 11.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 85 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 36.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 65 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 59 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 49 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 49 | 49.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 47 | 4.4 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 Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Sandy Lake. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Sandy Lake.
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.