In 2025, fire departments serving Toronto responded to 85 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 64% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
448 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $759K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 72 | — | |
| 2022 | 92 | +27.8% | |
| 2023 | 97 | +5.4% | |
| 2024 | 102 | +5.2% | |
| 2025 | 85 | -16.7% |
For the 20 building fires Toronto departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 88 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 | 25 | 28.4% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 9 | 10.2% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 26 | 29.5% |
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 Toronto mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 49 | 55.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 1.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 6.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Toronto departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $18,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Toronto sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,075 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 175 | 32.0 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 35.3 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 25.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 49 | 40.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 9.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 24.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 31 | 22.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 8.5 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Toronto. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Toronto.
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.