In 2025, fire departments serving Slippery Rock responded to 55 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 84% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
439 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 105 | — | |
| 2022 | 81 | -22.9% | |
| 2023 | 127 | +56.8% | |
| 2024 | 71 | -44.1% | |
| 2025 | 55 | -22.5% |
For the 25 building fires Slippery Rock departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 73 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 | Undetermined | 31 | 42.5% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 16.4% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 6 | Egress/exit, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Outside area, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 10 | 13.7% |
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 Slippery Rock mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 50 | 68.5% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 6 | 8.2% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 1.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 1.4% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Slippery Rock sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,562 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 342 | 20.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 29.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 24.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 17.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 47 | 18.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 15.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 41 | 12.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 38 | 11.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 33 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 22.9 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 Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Slippery Rock. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Slippery Rock.
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.