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 Eagle Pass responded to 308 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $235K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Passenger vehicle fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 42% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Jul dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,301 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $16.9M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 200 | — | |
| 2022 | 270 | +35.0% | |
| 2023 | 277 | +2.6% | |
| 2024 | 246 | -11.2% | |
| 2025 | 308 | +25.2% |
For the 20 building fires Eagle Pass departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 822 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 | Outside area, other | 211 | 25.7% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 186 | 22.6% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 92 | 11.2% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 43 | 5.2% | |
| 5 | Other | 42 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 31 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 29 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 27 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 17 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 12 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 132 | 16.1% |
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 Eagle Pass mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 449 | 54.6% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 49 | 6.0% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 49 | 6.0% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 30 | 3.6% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 26 | 3.2% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 22 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 20 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 19 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 18 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 17 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 123 | 15.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Eagle Pass departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 62% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $235,372 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $193,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $180,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $90,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $60,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $50,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Eagle Pass sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 34,284 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 3,500 | 25.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,050 | 28.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,000 | 33.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 3,000 | 30.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,538 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 28.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 26.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 49.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,090 | 48.4 mi |
Top 3 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 Eagle Pass. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Eagle Pass.
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.