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 Edinburg responded to 854 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 40% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
4,040 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $10.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 953 | — | |
| 2022 | 570 | -40.2% | |
| 2023 | 852 | +49.5% | |
| 2024 | 811 | -4.8% | |
| 2025 | 854 | +5.3% |
For the 42 building fires Edinburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 1,470 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 | 486 | 33.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 201 | 13.7% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 175 | 11.9% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 155 | 10.5% | |
| 5 | Other | 82 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 61 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 30 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 27 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 23 | 1.6% | |
| 10 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 16 | 1.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 214 | 14.6% |
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 Edinburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 960 | 65.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 87 | 5.9% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 69 | 4.7% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 50 | 3.4% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 41 | 2.8% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 40 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 22 | 1.5% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 22 | 1.5% | |
| 9 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 21 | 1.4% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 20 | 1.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 138 | 9.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Edinburg departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 61% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $200,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $195,533 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $150,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $125,000 | Outside gas or vapor combustion explosion | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $120,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Edinburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 88,598 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 | 25,600 | 16.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 8,000 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,000 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 6,400 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 34.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,010 | 39.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,000 | 49.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,600 | 11.2 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 35.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,300 | 38.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,200 | 37.6 mi |
Top 10 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 Edinburg. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Edinburg.
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.