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 Carrollton responded to 549 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $75K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
3,259 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $9.5M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 662 | — | |
| 2022 | 821 | +24.0% | |
| 2023 | 702 | -14.5% | |
| 2024 | 525 | -25.2% | |
| 2025 | 549 | +4.6% |
For the 21 building fires Carrollton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 630 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 125 | 19.8% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 100 | 15.9% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 58 | 9.2% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 34 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 32 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Other | 25 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 25 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 19 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 16 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 14 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 182 | 28.9% |
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 Carrollton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 315 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 64 | 10.2% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 46 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 34 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 27 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 23 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 20 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Cigarette | 17 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 16 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 10 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 58 | 9.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Carrollton departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 60% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $75,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $55,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $40,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $30,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Carrollton sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 31,769 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,000 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,600 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,153 | 42.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,000 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 26.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,700 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,280 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Smoking | 1,000 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 960 | 36.1 mi |
Top 8 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 Carrollton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Carrollton.
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.