Statistics help the Raleigh Fire Department focus its efforts on geographical areas that may have a specific public safety need. Stats also help the department keep track of resources needed to mitigate hazards.
During the third quarter of this year, the number of fires decreased significantly – by 20 percent. There were 263 fires, compared to 332 in the second quarter. Capt. James Pearce of the Raleigh Fire Department says that can be primarily attributed to a wetter period in the third quarter after several months of extremely dry conditions.
Number of Cooking Fires Stays Steady
Fires related to the leading cause – unattended cooking – stayed steady. There were 45 fires compared to the second quarter’s 46 fires. “This is good and bad as the number of cooking fires is still quite a high percentage of the fires we see, especially in homes,” Pearce says. “However, any time we see the numbers stay at a fairly steady rate from quarter to quarter it’s better than one of the alternatives: an increase.”
Fires associated with inappropriately discarded smoking materials (the second leading cause of fires in Raleigh) plummeted to one fire (from 15 fires). However, Pearce cautions that how fires are recorded was just changed, and the third-quarter number covers only inside fires. Number of fires caused by smoking materials in general stayed steady within the “outside fire and rubbish fire categories.”
The number of emergency medical services calls that the Raleigh Fire Department responded to increased slightly. RFD responded to 9,171 calls, compared to 8,856 EMS calls during the second quarter. Sixty-one percent of all RFD responses were medical calls.
Financial losses stemming from fires decreased to $4.3 million from $4.5 million in the second quarter.
| 2024 Quarter 3 Statistics | |
|---|---|
| All Fires (All fire responses including brush fires, vehicle fires, dumpster fires, etc., along with residential and commercial property fires) | 263 |
| -Residential Fires | 53 |
| -Commercial Fires | 17 |
| -Cooking Fires | 45 (64 percent of fires in buildings) |
| -Smoking Materials Fires | 1 (1.4 percent of fires in buildings) |
| Approximate Dollar Loss Due to Fire | $4.3 million |
| Fires Extinguised by a Sprinkler System | 6 |
| Fire Department EMS Responses | 9,171 (61 percent of all responses) |