- Author
- Ahrens, M.
- Title
- Home Structure Fires.
- Coporate
- National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA
- Report
- NFPA No. USS12G, January 2009, 80 p.
- Keywords
- home fires | structures | fire statistics | residential buildings | apartments | fire departments | death | methodology
- Identifiers
- leading causes of reported home structure fires; National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS); changes in fire death patterns over time; outside and other fires on home properties; home structure fire tables; one-and two-family dwelling structure fire tables; apartment structure tables
- Abstract
- NFPA estimates that U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 378,600 reported home structure fires per year during the four-year-period of 2003-2006. These fires caused an estimated average of 2,850 civilian deaths, 13,090 civilian injuries, and $6.1 billion in direct property damage per year. More than two-thirds (70%) of the reported home structure fires and 84% of the fatal home fire injuries occurred in one- or two-family dwellings, including manufactured homes. The remainder occurred in apartments or similar properties. Cooking equipment is the leading cause of home structure fires and home fire injuries, while smoking materials are the leading causes of home fire deaths. Roughly half of all home fire deaths result from incidents reported between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Twenty-four percent of all home fire deaths were caused by fires that started in the bedroom; 23% resulted from fires originating in the living room, family room, or den. Although smoke alarms operated in 52% of the reported home fires, no working smoke alarm was present in 63% of the home fire deaths. These estimates are based on data from the U.S. Fire Administration's (USFA's) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) and the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA's) annual fire department experience survey.