In 2025, fire departments serving Wellesley responded to 116 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $75K 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 81% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
901 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $3.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 232 | — | |
| 2022 | 197 | -15.1% | |
| 2023 | 195 | -1.0% | |
| 2024 | 161 | -17.4% | |
| 2025 | 116 | -28.0% |
For the 2 building fires Wellesley departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 105 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 | Other | 25 | 23.8% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 16 | 15.2% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 10 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 7.6% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 9 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 21 | 20.0% |
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 Wellesley mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 33 | 31.4% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 21 | 20.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 13 | 12.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 8 | 7.6% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 7 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 7.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Wellesley departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $60,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $19,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Wellesley sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,705 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 800 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 5.6 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 22.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 23.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 25.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 22.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 22.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 22.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 55 | 34.7 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 Massachusetts cities with population within ±25% of Wellesley. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.