In 2025, fire departments serving West Paris responded to 17 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K 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 71% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
115 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $306K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 21 | — | |
| 2022 | 15 | -28.6% | |
| 2023 | 28 | +86.7% | |
| 2024 | 34 | +21.4% | |
| 2025 | 17 | -50.0% |
For the 3 building fires West Paris departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 7 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 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 6 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 7 | Exterior, exposed surface | 1 | 14.3% |
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 West Paris mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 42.9% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Radiated heat from another fire | 1 | 14.3% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 1 | 14.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by West Paris departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. West Paris sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,302 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 329 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 139 | 37.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 100 | 45.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 64 | 15.4 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 26.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Recreation and ceremony | 57 | 43.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 51 | 14.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 43 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 14.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 40 | 18.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39 | 16.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 33 | 11.4 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 Maine cities with population within ±25% of West Paris. 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.