In 2025, fire departments serving Stockbridge responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents . 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 72% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
194 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $987K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 | — | |
| 2022 | 40 | -18.4% | |
| 2023 | 33 | -17.5% | |
| 2024 | 40 | +21.2% | |
| 2025 | 32 | -20.0% |
For the 0 building fires Stockbridge departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 34 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 | Wall surface: exterior | 6 | 17.6% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 17.6% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 11.8% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Service facilities, other | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - 5+ persons; including barrack/dormitory | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 20.6% |
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 Stockbridge mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 7 | 20.6% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 11.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 8 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 9 | Undetermined | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 10 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 11.8% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Stockbridge sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,250 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,300 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Smoking | 550 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 384 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 27.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | 285 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 272 | 30.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 39.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 180 | 45.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 180 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 175 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Recreation and ceremony | 154 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 146 | 48.2 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 Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Stockbridge. 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.