In 2025, fire departments serving Underhill responded to 28 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K 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.
Jun peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
108 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $526K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 21 | — | |
| 2022 | 18 | -14.3% | |
| 2023 | 14 | -22.2% | |
| 2024 | 27 | +92.9% | |
| 2025 | 28 | +3.7% |
For the 9 building fires Underhill departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 26 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 19.2% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 11.5% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 3 | 11.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 23.1% |
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 Underhill mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 38.5% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 19.2% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 11.5% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Match | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 10 | Candle | 1 | 3.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Underhill departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $500 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Underhill sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,582 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 547 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 80 | 29.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Smoking | 75 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 52 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 51 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Recreation and ceremony | 50 | 7.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 47 | 47.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 45 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 44 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1994 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 27.2 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 Vermont cities with population within ±25% of Underhill. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Underhill.
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.