Ross Fire in North Texas Reaches 100% Containment After 90,000-Acre Run
The Ross Fire near Palo Pinto, Texas burned about 90,000 acres and destroyed at least 167 structures before crews fully contained it on Sept. 16.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Big Spring responded to 210 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 47% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,433 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $25.8M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 376 | — | |
| 2022 | 385 | +2.4% | |
| 2023 | 243 | -36.9% | |
| 2024 | 219 | -9.9% | |
| 2025 | 210 | -4.1% |
For the 35 building fires Big Spring departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 616 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 107 | 17.4% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 90 | 14.6% | |
| 3 | Other | 67 | 10.9% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 52 | 8.4% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 28 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 26 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 18 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Structural area, other | 17 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 16 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 14 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 181 | 29.4% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Big Spring mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 266 | 43.2% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 75 | 12.2% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 52 | 8.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 40 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 30 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 25 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 19 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 16 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 13 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 9 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 71 | 11.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Big Spring departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 59% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $250,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $100,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $85,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $80,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $60,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Big Spring sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
9 fire-related casualties recorded in NFIRS Module 11 across the 2021–2025 window. Age, gender, and severity are coarse-binned — no individual identification possible.
| Age | Count | |
|---|---|---|
| 0-9 | 1 | |
| 10-19 | 0 | |
| 20-29 | 1 | |
| 30-39 | 2 | |
| 40-49 | 2 | |
| 50-59 | 0 | |
| 60-69 | 0 | |
| 70-79 | 0 | |
| 80+ | 0 |
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 543,898 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 220,000 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 65,000 | 47.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 39,812 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 28,625 | 46.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25,000 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20,200 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 19,391 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 16,500 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15,000 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 13,740 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 10,000 | 29.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,924 | 43.2 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Texas cities with population within ±25% of Big Spring. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Big Spring.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.