In 2025, fire departments serving Smithsburg responded to 204 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K 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 75% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
647 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $274K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 119 | — | |
| 2022 | 115 | -3.4% | |
| 2023 | 85 | -26.1% | |
| 2024 | 124 | +45.9% | |
| 2025 | 204 | +64.5% |
For the 33 building fires Smithsburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 51 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 | 32 | 62.7% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 4 | Other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 6 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Machinery room or area; elevator machinery room | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 15.7% |
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 Smithsburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 42 | 82.4% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 5 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Lightning | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 2.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Smithsburg departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $5,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Smithsburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,168 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 20.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 39.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 405 | 39.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 40.2 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 350 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 345 | 45.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 145 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 105 | 38.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 76 | 30.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 72 | 38.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 70 | 45.6 mi |
Top 5 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 Smithsburg. 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.