In 2025, fire departments serving Willards responded to 23 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Hazardous condition, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 74% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
137 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $101K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 33 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | +12.1% | |
| 2023 | 21 | -43.2% | |
| 2024 | 23 | +9.5% | |
| 2025 | 23 | +0.0% |
For the 2 building fires Willards departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 21 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 | 7 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Machinery room or area; elevator machinery room | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 9.5% |
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 Willards mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 66.7% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 9.5% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 1 | 4.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Willards departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Willards sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 34,504 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 3,208 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,910 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,124 | 34.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,066 | 34.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,800 | 33.1 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,756 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,700 | 31.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,596 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,580 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,367 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,348 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,250 | 35.8 mi |
Top 7 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Willards. 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.