In 2025, fire departments serving Valatie responded to 36 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Fuel burner/boiler malfunction, fire confined lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Oct peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
282 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 45 | — | |
| 2022 | 70 | +55.6% | |
| 2023 | 74 | +5.7% | |
| 2024 | 57 | -23.0% | |
| 2025 | 36 | -36.8% |
For the 5 building fires Valatie departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 29 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 24.1% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 6 | 20.7% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 10.3% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 5 | Other | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 6 | Function area, other | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Closet | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 17.2% |
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 Valatie mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 41.4% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 6 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 7 | Lightning | 2 | 6.9% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Valatie 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 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $8,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,000 | Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Valatie sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,675 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Natural | 384 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 321 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Recreation and ceremony | 285 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 272 | 34.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 146 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 130 | 22.8 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 43.2 mi | |
| 1993 | Equipment and vehicle use | 90 | 19.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 34.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 79 | 30.6 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 36.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 65 | 23.2 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six New York cities with population within ±25% of Valatie. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Valatie.
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.