In 2025, fire departments serving Weston responded to 266 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 86% of all calls.
Dec peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,262 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.6M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 242 | — | |
| 2022 | 213 | -12.0% | |
| 2023 | 245 | +15.0% | |
| 2024 | 296 | +20.8% | |
| 2025 | 266 | -10.1% |
For the 4 building fires Weston departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 127 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 | Undetermined | 23 | 18.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 22 | 17.3% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 21 | 16.5% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 12 | 9.4% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 6.3% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Other | 5 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 3.9% | |
| 9 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 4 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 19 | 15.0% |
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 Weston mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 54 | 42.5% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 14 | 11.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 11 | 8.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 11 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 6.3% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 4 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 11 | 8.7% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Weston sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 3,811 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 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 700 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 8.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 300 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 256 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 20.4 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 186 | 23.0 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 172 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 90 | 20.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 79 | 19.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 58 | 19.8 mi |
Top 5 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 Weston. 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.