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 Umatilla responded to 162 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 57% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
798 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.1M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 127 | — | |
| 2022 | 165 | +29.9% | |
| 2023 | 160 | -3.0% | |
| 2024 | 184 | +15.0% | |
| 2025 | 162 | -12.0% |
For the 20 building fires Umatilla departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 287 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 | 72 | 25.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 34 | 11.8% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 28 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 24 | 8.4% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 23 | 8.0% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Other | 12 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 9 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 7 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 59 | 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 Umatilla mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 145 | 50.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 19 | 6.6% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 19 | 6.6% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 13 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 13 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 11 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 9 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 8 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 6 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 35 | 12.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Umatilla departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 91% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $75,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $63,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $32,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $29,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $27,633 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $22,760 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $18,548 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Umatilla sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 183,911 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Natural | 39,000 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 17,000 | 44.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 13,600 | 37.5 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 10,560 | 19.0 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 10,240 | 35.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,022 | 18.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7,500 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 6,575 | 38.6 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 6,420 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 5,420 | 18.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 5,136 | 46.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Natural | 5,000 | 42.2 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 Florida cities with population within ±25% of Umatilla. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Umatilla.
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.