In 2025, fire departments serving West Sand Lake responded to 21 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 76% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
104 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $265K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 13 | — | |
| 2022 | 26 | +100.0% | |
| 2023 | 26 | +0.0% | |
| 2024 | 18 | -30.8% | |
| 2025 | 21 | +16.7% |
For the 1 building fires West Sand Lake departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 9 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 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 2 | 22.2% | |
| 4 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 1 | 11.1% |
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 Sand Lake mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 4 | 44.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Lightning | 1 | 11.1% | |
| 6 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 11.1% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. West Sand Lake sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,945 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 | 23.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 146 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 130 | 18.8 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 100 | 35.8 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 96 | 39.8 mi | |
| 1993 | Equipment and vehicle use | 90 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 83 | 47.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 79 | 44.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 75 | 21.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 73 | 43.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 65 | 11.6 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 New York cities with population within ±25% of West Sand Lake. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in West Sand Lake.
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.