In 2025, fire departments serving Westmoreland responded to 86 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $330K 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 63% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
477 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $3.2M cumulative property loss. 3 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 76 | — | |
| 2022 | 94 | +23.7% | |
| 2023 | 114 | +21.3% | |
| 2024 | 107 | -6.1% | |
| 2025 | 86 | -19.6% |
For the 22 building fires Westmoreland departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 222 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 59 | 26.6% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 27 | 12.2% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 26 | 11.7% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 16 | 7.2% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 13 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 11 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 9 | 4.1% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Wall surface: exterior | 8 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Other | 5 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 40 | 18.0% |
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 Westmoreland mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 105 | 47.3% | |
| 2 | Cigarette lighter | 27 | 12.2% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 16 | 7.2% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 13 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 13 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 8 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Radiated heat from another fire | 5 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 4 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 20 | 9.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Westmoreland departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $330,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Westmoreland sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,560 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 800 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 457 | 38.7 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 400 | 49.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 328 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 282 | 40.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 230 | 43.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 220 | 41.8 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 205 | 49.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 203 | 40.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 40.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 180 | 25.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 178 | 30.6 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 Tennessee cities with population within ±25% of Westmoreland. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Westmoreland.
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.