Fire
in 1998: The Big Picture
Fires
and most associated losses hit a record low in 1998. In
1998, U.S. municipal fire departments responded to an estimated 1,755,500
fires. These fires killed 4,035 civilians and caused 23,100 reported civilian
fire injuries. This was the smallest number of reported fires, deaths
and injuries since the NFPA began collecting data in 1977. Direct property
damage was estimated at $8.6 billion dollars. When adjusted for inflation,
this was also a record low. Ninety-one firefighters died while on duty.
Firefighter deaths have been hovering around 100 per year for the past
few years after dipping into the seventies in 1992 and 1993. The table
compares the fire experience in 1998 to the problem seen one year earlier
in 1997, ten years earlier in 1988 and 20 years earlier in 1978. The graphs
on the following pages show loss trends from 1977 (the first year of available
data) through 1998 for fire incidents, civilian fire deaths, civilian
fire injuries, and firefighter deaths. Firefighter injuries, direct property
damage and outdoor fires are shown for 1988 to 1998 only.
Structure
fires caused largest share of fire losses. During 1998, the 517,500
structure fires accounted for 29% of the reported fires. These fires caused
3,420, or 85%, of the civilian fire deaths, 19,425, or 84%, of the civilian
fire injuries, and $6.7 billion in direct property damage or 78% of the
total direct property loss. Reported structure fires fell 53% from 1,098,000
in 1977 to 517,500 in 1998. From 1997 to 1998, they fell 6%. According
to NFPA 901, Uniform Coding for Fire Protection, 1976 edition, (the data
classification system used by NFIRS) any fire in or on a structure is
considered a structure fire, even if only the contents were involved and
there was no structural damage.
Home fires
dominate the structure fire problem. Seventy-four percent (381,500)
of the 517,500 structure fires occurred in residential properties, including
homes, hotels, motels, rooming houses and dormitories; 71% (369,500) occurred
in homes. (Homes include one- and two-family dwellings, apartments and
manufactured housing.) Home fires fell 49% from the 723,500 reported in
1977. The 7% drop from 395,500 in 1997 to the record low in 1998 was consistent
with structure fires overall.
Fifty-five
percent (283,000) of all reported structure fires occurred in one- and
two-family homes, and 17% (86,500) occurred in apartments.
Four of
every five fire deaths occurred in home structure fires. Eighty percent
(80%) of the 4,035 total civilian deaths occurred in home structure fires.
Although only 16% of all reported fires occurred in one- and two-family
structures, these fires caused 69% (2,775) of the fire deaths. Apartment
fires accounted for 5% of all reported fires, but resulted in 11% (445)
of the deaths. Home fires are covered in more detail in the residential
section of this report.
Fire deaths
continued their downward trend. Total civilian fire deaths and home
fire deaths specifically both fell 45% from 1977 to 1998. From 1997 to
1998, total civilian fire deaths fell very slightly (rounds to 0%) while
home fire deaths fell 4%. Fire deaths followed a generally downward trend
since 1977. The graph shows that the lines for home fire deaths and overall
fire deaths closely resemble one another.
Vehicle
fires are also a significant cause of fire deaths. During 1998, the
381,000 reported vehicle fires caused 575 civilian deaths, 2,225 civilian
injuries, and $1.3 billion in direct property loss. These fires accounted
for 22% of the reported fires, 14% of the civilian fire deaths, and 15%
of the total direct property damage. The 480 civilian fire deaths accounted
for almost three times the 170 deaths reported in non-residential structure
fires and more than twice the 200 fire deaths occurring any type of building
other than a home. During 1998, almost 14% of all civilian fire deaths
were in highway vehicles; less than 1% occurred in non-highway vehicles
such as planes, trains, ships or boats or construction equipment. Vehicle
fires fell 25% from 508,000 in 1977. From 1997 to 1998, highway vehicle
fires fell 5%, while Mrnon-highway vehicle fires rose 13%. A detailed
report describing vehicle fires categorized by mobile property type category
may be ordered from NFPA's One-Stop Data Shop.
Almost
half of the reported fires were considered "outside or other." Eight
hundred and fifty-seven thousand (857,000), or 49%, of the 1,755,500 total
reported fires were considered outside or other. These fires caused 40,
or 1%, of the civilian deaths, 1,450, or 6%, of the civilian injuries
and $575 million, or 7%, of the direct property damage. These fires rose
1% from 1997 to 1998, but have fallen 60% from 1977 to 1998.
These outside
and other fires include: 62,000 outside fires involving property of value;
424,000 brush, grass, or wildland fires; 229,000 outside rubbish fires;
and 142,000 other fires including outside spills or leaks with ensuing
fires, explosions with no after-fire, and unclassified or unknown-type
fires.
The
U.S. Fire Problem - 1998
|
Reported
to Fire Departments |
1998
|
1997
|
1988
|
1978
|
Civilian
Deaths |
4,035
|
Down
0%*
|
Down
35%
|
Down 48%
|
Firefighter
Deaths |
91
|
Down
6%
|
Down
33%
|
Down
47%
|
Civilian
Injuries |
23,100
|
Down
3%
|
Down
25%
|
Down
23%
|
Firefighter
Injuries |
87,500
|
Up
2%
|
Down 15%
|
Down
13%
|
Direct
Property Damage
Adjusted
for Inflation*
|
$8,629,000,000
|
Up
1%
Down 0%
|
Up
3%
Down 26%
|
Up
92%
Down 27%
|
Civilian
Deaths per Thousand Fires |
2.30
|
Up
2%
|
Down
10%
|
Down
16%
|
Civilian
Deaths per Million Population |
14.9
|
Down
2%
|
Down
41%
|
Down
53%
|
Property
Damage per Fire
Adjusted
for Inflation*
|
$4,915
|
Up
3%
Up 2%
|
Up
43%
Up 2%%
|
Up
68%
Up 17%
|
* Using the
consumer price index on the Inflation Calculator at www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi
on 12/1/99 and 4/14/00.
|