Two Lithium-Ion Battery Fires in Three Weeks Destroy Homes in Pasco County, Florida
Battery fires in Zephyrhills and New Port Richey destroyed two homes, killed a dog and displaced six people between Aug. 31 and Sept. 18.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Thonotosassa responded to 56 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $270K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
Jun peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
422 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 61 | — | |
| 2022 | 93 | +52.5% | |
| 2023 | 91 | -2.2% | |
| 2024 | 121 | +33.0% | |
| 2025 | 56 | -53.7% |
For the 4 building fires Thonotosassa departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 93 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 | 16 | 17.2% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 15 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 9.7% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 9 | 9.7% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 8.6% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 6 | 6.5% | |
| 8 | Other | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 14.0% |
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 Thonotosassa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 84 | 90.3% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 3 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 7 | Lightning | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 1 | 1.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Thonotosassa departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $270,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $60,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $40,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $7,500 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $3,500 | Outside rubbish fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Thonotosassa sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 53,426 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 10,119 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,407 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 3,000 | 18.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,507 | 34.7 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 2,500 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,275 | 24.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,189 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 21.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 2,000 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 2,000 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,939 | 22.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,775 | 34.4 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 33592 | 420 |
Six Florida cities with population within ±25% of Thonotosassa. 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.