ZIP 20837 recorded 38 fire and hazmat incidents in 2025, 161 across 2021–2025. Primary county: Montgomery County, MD.
161 incidents from 2021 through 2025 inside this ZIP.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 24 | |
| 2022 | 33 | |
| 2023 | 33 | |
| 2024 | 33 | |
| 2025 | 38 |
Mar peaks. Nov dips. Aggregated across all 5 years inside this ZIP.
Top 5 NFIRS incident types for ZIP 20837 across 2021–2025.
| # | Incident type | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Power line down | 43 | 26.7% | |
| 2 | Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) | 26 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Hazardous condition, other | 17 | 10.6% | |
| 4 | Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other | 17 | 10.6% | |
| 5 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | 5 | 3.1% |
For the 0 building fires reported here in 2025, here's how investigators classified ignition cause.
NFIRS Area of Origin for ZIP 20837 fires across 2021–2025.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Outside area, other | 7 | 26.9% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 19.2% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 11.5% | |
| 4 | Other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | All other areas | 2 | 7.7% |
NFIRS HEAT_SOURC code — the physical thing that started the fire.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 38.5% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 4 | 15.4% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 7.7% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | All other sources | 3 | 11.5% |
Largest single-incident losses in ZIP 20837 across 2021–2025. These 8 fires alone account for 2500% of the ZIP's 2025 reported total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Year | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Building fires | 2022 | Significant |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building fires | 2023 | Significant |
| 3 | $30,000 | Outside equipment fire | 2022 | Significant |
| 4 | $15,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | 2022 | Significant |
| 5 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2023 | Significant |
| 6 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | 2025 | Significant |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | 2023 | Significant |
| 8 | $5,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | 2024 | Significant |
Some ZIPs span multiple cities. Ranked by 5-yr NFIRS incidents inside ZIP 20837.
| # | City | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Poolesville | 157 | |
| 2 | Germantown | 1 |
The figures above are historical. For today's air quality, fire-weather warnings, and active fires, go to the official sources.
NFIRS reports each fire incident with a 5-digit address ZIP. We aggregate those rows directly to produce ZIP-level totals — 161 incidents in this ZIP across 2021–2025. Building-fire breakdowns (Area of Origin, Heat Source, ignition cause) only count fires investigators classified beyond the basic incident report. Because NFIRS reporting is voluntary, totals are a strong indicator rather than a complete census.