In 2025, fire departments serving Williamsport responded to 193 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 59% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
722 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.7M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 117 | — | |
| 2022 | 112 | -4.3% | |
| 2023 | 138 | +23.2% | |
| 2024 | 162 | +17.4% | |
| 2025 | 193 | +19.1% |
For the 67 building fires Williamsport departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 106 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 | 22 | 20.8% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 19 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 9 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 6 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 5 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 28 | 26.4% |
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 Williamsport mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 48 | 45.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 16 | 15.1% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 5.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 6 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 5 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 5 | 4.7% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 3 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 6.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Williamsport departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 92% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $130,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $40,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $30,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $22,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Williamsport sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,329 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 10.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 888 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 461 | 42.9 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 405 | 32.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 400 | 33.4 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 350 | 34.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 345 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 300 | 48.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 31.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 145 | 12.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 105 | 31.5 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 76 | 31.6 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 Maryland cities with population within ±25% of Williamsport. 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.