Property losses from large-loss fires decreased by nearly $300 million from 2009 to 2010, according to a new report from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA.

“Large-Loss Fires in the U.S,” published in the November/December 2011 issue of NFPA Journal®, says eight fewer large-loss fires accounted for $298.4 million less in property damage in the U.S. last year.

Each year, NFPA reports on the previous year’s large-loss fires, tracking and verifying loss information reported in the media or by other sources.  Large-loss fires and explosions are defined as incidents that cause at least $10 million in direct property loss, and in 2010, the U.S. experienced 17 large-loss fires that resulted in roughly $950 million in direct property losses. The report looked at a relatively small portion (.001 percent) of estimated fires in 2010 that accounted for 5.6 percent of the total estimated dollar loss.