- Author
- Ahrens, M.
- Title
- Home Structure Fires.
- Coporate
- National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA
- Keywords
- building fires | structures | house fires | fire statistics | residential buildings | NFIRS | apartments | fire departments | fire fighting | fire suppression | damage | heat sources | ignition
- Identifiers
- National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)
- Abstract
- NFPA estimates that U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 375,200 reported home structure fires per year during the five-year-period of 2000-2004. These fires caused an estimated average of 2,970 civilian deaths, 14,390 civilian injuries, and $5.6 billion in direct property damage per year. Three-quarters (75%) of the reported home structure fires and 87% of the fatal home fire injuries occurred in one- and two-family dwellings (including manufactured homes). The remainder occurred in apartments or similar properties. Cooking equipment is the leading cause of home fires and home fire injuries, while smoking materials are the leading cause of home fire deaths. Heating equipment ranked second in causes of home fires and home fire deaths. More than 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 living room, family room or den; 23% resulted from fires originating in the bedroom. Although smoke alarms operated in 49% of the reported home fires, no working smoke alarm was present in 65% 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.