In 2025, fire departments serving Berkshire County responded to 1,029 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $400K property loss.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Top five categories make up about 55% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips.
7,389 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1,553 | |
| 2022 | 1,532 | |
| 2023 | 1,730 | |
| 2024 | 1,545 | |
| 2025 | 1,029 |
For the 70 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Berkshire County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 91% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $400,000 | OTIS | Building fires | Major |
| 2 | $256,000 | NORTH ADAMS | Building fires | Major |
| 3 | $250,000 | Florida | Building fires | Major |
| 4 | $200,000 | FLORIDA | Building fires | Significant |
| 5 | $200,000 | PITTSFIELD | Building fires | Significant |
| 6 | $100,000 | MASS TURNPIKE | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant |
| 7 | $100,000 | NORTH ADAMS | Building fires | Significant |
| 8 | $100,000 | NORTH ADAMS | Building fires | Significant |
| 9 | $75,000 | LEE | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant |
| 10 | $60,000 | Lanesborough | Building fires | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 25003.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield | 43,730 | View › |
| North Adams | 12,937 | View › |
| Adams | 8,149 | View › |
| Williamstown | 7,630 | View › |
| Great Barrington | 7,184 | View › |
| Dalton | 6,332 | View › |
| Lee | 5,765 | View › |
| Lenox | 5,083 | View › |
| Sheffield | 3,312 | View › |
| Cheshire | 3,239 | View › |
| Lanesborough | 3,037 | View › |
| Becket | 2,105 | View › |
36 departments report from this county.
Top 10 fire perimeters by acres burned (state-scoped fallback while we build out per-county polygons).
| # | Name | Year | Agency | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mt Tom | 2014 | FWS | 23 |
| 2 | Highlands Wildfire | 2013 | NPS | 6 |
| 3 | 20217SPB Plot 9 | 2021 | NPS | 2 |
| 4 | 0021720210525 SPB Plot 203 | 2021 | NPS | 2 |
| 5 | 20210707SPB15_14Rx | 2021 | NPS | 2 |
| 6 | SPB Plot #10 | 2021 | NPS | 1 |
| 7 | 00217420210527 SPB Plot 19 Rx | 2021 | NPS | 1 |
| 8 | PTownPearsols_CPB_2021 | 2021 | NPS | 1 |
| 9 | Pilgrim Springs_CPB_20210204 | 2021 | NPS | 1 |
| 10 | Highland Center_CPB_20210406 | 2021 | NPS | 1 |
County-level NFIRS aggregates for 2025, plus 5-year totals across 2021–2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Wildfire risk score (0–100) and Expected Annual Loss come from FEMA's National Risk Index. Drought class is the most recent USDM classification (D0 = abnormally dry through D4 = exceptional drought). Historical fire perimeters are sourced from the NIFC InterAgency Fire Perimeter History.