In 2025, fire departments serving Walpole responded to 34 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 74% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
224 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.7M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 35 | — | |
| 2022 | 43 | +22.9% | |
| 2023 | 64 | +48.8% | |
| 2024 | 48 | -25.0% | |
| 2025 | 34 | -29.2% |
For the 3 building fires Walpole departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 33 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 | 6 | 18.2% | |
| 2 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 12.1% | |
| 3 | Other | 3 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Function area, other | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 6 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 21.2% |
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 Walpole mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 18.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 6 | 18.2% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 5 | 15.2% | |
| 4 | Lightning | 3 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 3 | 9.1% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 6.1% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 10 | Match | 1 | 3.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 6.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Walpole departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Walpole sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,788 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 272 | 44.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 270 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 190 | 16.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 137 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 83 | 48.9 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 49.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 59 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 55 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 47 | 20.7 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six New Hampshire cities with population within ±25% of Walpole. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Walpole.
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.