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 Elsa responded to 58 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $10K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Incomplete 2025 data. Elsa's departments reported 58 incidents to NFIRS for 2025, against about 122 in a typical year, so 2025 figures on this page undercount. The 2021–2025 totals are the better guide.
Attempted burning, illegal action, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 64% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
611 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $521K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 172 | — | |
| 2022 | 109 | -36.6% | |
| 2023 | 136 | +24.8% | |
| 2024 | 136 | +0.0% | |
| 2025* | 58 | — |
* Well below Elsa's usual volume. That almost always means one or more departments didn't submit a full year to NFIRS, not that fires dropped, so no year-over-year change is shown for it.
For the 2 building fires Elsa departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 259 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 | 193 | 74.5% | |
| 2 | Other | 22 | 8.5% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 13 | 5.0% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 3.1% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 1.2% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 1.2% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 1.2% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 9 | Structural area, other | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 3.1% |
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 Elsa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 215 | 83.0% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 10 | 3.9% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 3.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 1.9% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 1.5% | |
| 6 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 4 | 1.5% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 8 | Molten, hot material | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 9 | Match | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 0.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 1.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elsa departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elsa sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 83,898 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 | 25,600 | 19.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 8,000 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,000 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,010 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,600 | 21.2 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,500 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,500 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,300 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,200 | 45.5 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 Elsa. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Elsa.
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.