- Author
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
- Title
- Arson in the United States.
- Coporate
- Federal Emergency Management Agency, Emmitsburg, MD
- Journal
- Topical Fire Research Series, Vol. 1, No. 8, 1-3, January 2001
- Distribution
- For more information about Topical Fire Research Series contact: Website: http://www.usfa.fema.gov/nfdc/tfrs.htm AVAILABLE FROM: U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), 16825 South Seton Ave., Emmitsburg, MD 21727. Telephone: 301-447-1000. Website: http://www.usfa.fema.gov/
- Keywords
- arson | fire losses | fire statistics | building fires
- Identifiers
- arson is the leading cause of fires (267,000 annually) in the United States and the second leading cause of deaths (475) and injuries (2,000); arson causes $1.4 billion in property loss each year; Community, municipal, and Federal interventions in addressing certain aspects of the problem have ameliorated arson incidence; 50% of arson fires occur outdoors, 30% in structures, and 20% in vehicles; half of all arson arrests are juveniles; Vacant and abandoned buildings are targets for arsonists. Also poorer neighborhoods experience 14 times the number of arsons as higher income neighborhoods; Church arsons increased sharply in 1996