In 2025, fire departments serving Pender County responded to 739 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $30K property loss. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as Very High.
Authorized controlled burning lead by count. Top five categories make up about 52% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips.
3,965 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 899 | |
| 2022 | 909 | |
| 2023 | 848 | |
| 2024 | 570 | |
| 2025 | 739 |
For the 81 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Pender County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 67% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $30,000 | Burgaw | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 2 | $30,000 | Hampstead | Outside rubbish fire, other | Significant |
| 3 | $29,415 | BURGAW | Building fires | Significant |
| 4 | $25,000 | BURGAW | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 5 | $25,000 | Hampstead | Building fires | Significant |
| 6 | $18,000 | BURGAW | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 7 | $15,000 | ROCKY POINT | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 8 | $10,000 | Maple Hill | Building fires | Significant |
| 9 | $10,000 | BURGAW | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 10 | $10,000 | ROCKY POINT | Fire in portable building, fixed location | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 37141.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| Hampstead | 8,340 | View › |
| Surf City | 3,888 | View › |
| Burgaw | 3,207 | View › |
| Rocky Point | 940 | View › |
| Topsail Beach | 471 | View › |
| St. Helena | 465 | View › |
| Atkinson | 410 | View › |
| Watha | 230 | View › |
| Long Creek | 77 | View › |
| Six Forks | 0 | View › |
| Point Caswell | 0 | View › |
| Mooretown | 0 | View › |
2 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 | GREAT LAKES | 2023 | USFS | 32,155 |
| 2 | Whipping Creek Road | 2016 | PRI | 15,456 |
| 3 | COLLETT RIDGE | 2023 | USFS | 5,506 |
| 4 | St Mary's | 2008 | NPS | 4,565 |
| 5 | Carolina Bay | 2009 | USFS | 2,659 |
| 6 | Big Ditch | 2021 | FWS | 1,486 |
| 7 | HANCOCK CREEK | 2022 | USFS | 1,177 |
| 8 | BUCK MTN | 2002 | NPS | 1,124 |
| 9 | NCMCR-FY19-RX-1.1.2.b | 2019 | FWS | 1,080 |
| 10 | VAF220152 | 2022 | NPS | 1,079 |
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.