In 2021, the United States witnessed a significant number of fires, resulting in civilian deaths, injuries, and property damage. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), local fire departments responded to approximately 1,353,500 fires during the year, causing an estimated $15.9 billion in direct property damage. These statistics highlight the importance of understanding the breakdown of these fires for further analysis. It is important to note that firefighter fatalities and injuries are covered in separate NFPA reports and are not included in this analysis. The year 2021 posed various challenges for fire departments due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Fire stations had to handle not only the regular fire emergencies but also respond to frequent medical calls related to COVID-19. Firefighters faced additional burdens of managing COVID-19 outbreaks and coping with understaffing within their departments.
Key Statistics: The following key statistics provide insights into the fire incidents in 2021:
- Frequency of Fires:
- On average, a fire department in the US responded to a fire every 23 seconds.
- A civilian suffered a nonfatal fire injury every 36 minutes.
- A civilian was fatally injured in a fire every two hours and 18 minutes.
- These estimates are derived from NFPA’s 2021 Fire Experience Survey (FES), which includes fires reported to local fire departments. Major incidents reported by state fire agencies were also considered.
Trends: Analyzing the trends in fire incidents from 2020 to 2021, the following observations were made:
- Total Fire Incidents:
- The total number of fires decreased by 2.5% from 2020 to 2021.
- Civilian Deaths and Injuries:
- Civilian deaths increased by 8.5% compared to 2020.
- Civilian injuries decreased by 3.3% compared to 2020.
- Property Damage:
- Direct property damage decreased by 30% compared to 2020.
- However, the 2020 property damage figures included losses from California fires in the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) and a fire that destroyed a naval ship in San Diego.
- In 2021, the largest losses were caused by WUI fires in Colorado.
- Although the reported property loss in 2021 is lower than in 2020, there is an overall upward trend in the past five years.
Long-term Comparison: To provide a broader context, a comparison of fire incidents from 1980 to 2021 was made:
- Total Fire Incidents:
- The estimate of total fires in 2021 was 55% lower than in 1980.
- Civilian Deaths and Injuries:
- Fire death estimates were 42% lower in 2021 than in 1980.
- Fire injury estimates were 44% lower in 2021 than in 1980.
- Property Loss:
- Adjusted for inflation, property loss in 2021 was 20% lower than in 1980.
Population-based Rates: Examining the fire and civilian fire death rates per million population:
- Fire Rates:
- The rate of fires per 1,000 population in 2021 was 68% lower than in 1980 and 2% lower than in 2020.
- Civilian Fire Death Rates:
- The rate of civilian fire deaths per million population in 2021 was 60% lower than in 1980 and 8% higher than in 2020.
These statistics indicate a general decline in fire incidents and related casualties over the past few decades, despite some fluctuations from year to year.
Note: It is important to understand that statistical significance is taken into account in this report. If a change from one year to another is statistically significant, it is mentioned. Otherwise, even if it seems important or meaningful, the change is not considered statistically significant. The primary purpose of this report is to present data and related information rather than speculating on the causes of fluctuations in fire statistics.
For more detailed information on how the estimates were calculated, please refer to the “Methodology Used in Calculating National Estimates from NFPA’s Fire Experience Survey.”
