In 2025, fire departments serving Tamworth responded to 64 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $175K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
307 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $264K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 70 | — | |
| 2022 | 85 | +21.4% | |
| 2023 | 42 | -50.6% | |
| 2024 | 46 | +9.5% | |
| 2025 | 64 | +39.1% |
For the 21 building fires Tamworth departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 21 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 | Other | 4 | 19.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 4 | 19.0% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 6 | Egress/exit, other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 4.8% |
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 Tamworth mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 7 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 4.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Tamworth departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $175,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $70,000 | Fire in portable building, fixed location | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Tamworth sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,855 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 329 | 10.4 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 314 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 275 | 5.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 139 | 15.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 31.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 72 | 28.2 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 23.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 54 | 28.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 39.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 41 | 40.3 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 New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Tamworth. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Tamworth.
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.