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 El Campo responded to 221 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $130K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Vehicle accident, general cleanup lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 69% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,081 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.6M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 188 | — | |
| 2022 | 214 | +13.8% | |
| 2023 | 247 | +15.4% | |
| 2024 | 211 | -14.6% | |
| 2025 | 221 | +4.7% |
For the 14 building fires El Campo departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 248 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 | 82 | 33.1% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 24 | 9.7% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 21 | 8.5% | |
| 4 | Wall surface: exterior | 17 | 6.9% | |
| 5 | Exterior, exposed surface | 15 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 9 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 7 | 2.8% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 6 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 5 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 5 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 57 | 23.0% |
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 El Campo mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 53 | 21.4% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 39 | 15.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 29 | 11.7% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 27 | 10.9% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 26 | 10.5% | |
| 6 | Radiated heat from another fire | 17 | 6.9% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 8 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Match | 7 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 7 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 28 | 11.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by El Campo departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 82% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $130,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $40,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $35,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $24,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $18,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. El Campo sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
6 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 | 0 | |
| 10-19 | 0 | |
| 20-29 | 2 | |
| 30-39 | 1 | |
| 40-49 | 1 | |
| 50-59 | 1 | |
| 60-69 | 0 | |
| 70-79 | 0 | |
| 80+ | 0 |
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 42,327 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,426 | 30.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,888 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,500 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 3,085 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,982 | 47.4 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 21.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Fireworks | 1,804 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 1,765 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,400 | 49.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Natural | 1,319 | 41.3 mi |
Top 2 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 El Campo. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in El Campo.
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.