Crap Towns / West Mersea / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in West Mersea?

There were 1.4 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in West Mersea from April 2023 to March 2026, 75% lower than the typical town's 5.7. The most common were other outdoor fires, at 0.9. In 2025/26 it was 2.8, up from 1.4 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	1.4	5.2
2024/25	0.0	5.4
2025/26	2.8	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Other outdoor fires	0.9	1.5
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	0.5	1.7
Bins and rubbish set on fire	0.0	1.9

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Jaywick	13.0 km	13.1
Clacton-on-Sea	15.4 km	12.7
Berechurch	9.4 km	6.7
Witham	20.1 km	4.4
Colchester	12.7 km	4.3
Maldon	16.7 km	2.3
Brightlingsea	7.9 km	1.9
Tiptree	13.0 km	1.8
West Mersea	–	1.4
Burnham-on-Crouch	18.0 km	1.3
Wivenhoe	9.7 km	0.6
The typical town	–	5.7