In 2025, fire departments serving Vinalhaven responded to 26 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $4K 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 50% of all calls.
Aug peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
122 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $302K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 31 | — | |
| 2022 | 15 | -51.6% | |
| 2023 | 21 | +40.0% | |
| 2024 | 29 | +38.1% | |
| 2025 | 26 | -10.3% |
For the 3 building fires Vinalhaven departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 13 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 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 3 | 23.1% | |
| 2 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Maintenance shop or area, paint shop or area | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 8 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 9 | Exterior, exposed surface | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 10 | Undetermined | 1 | 7.7% |
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 Vinalhaven mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 4 | 30.8% | |
| 2 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 15.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 7.7% | |
| 8 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 7.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Vinalhaven departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Vinalhaven sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 836 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 124 | 47.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 100 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 77 | 21.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 57 | 42.4 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 48 | 28.8 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 40 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 35 | 29.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 33 | 22.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 32 | 41.2 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 34.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 20 | 34.5 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 | 04863 | 122 |
Six Maine cities with population within ±25% of Vinalhaven. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Vinalhaven.
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.