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 Encinal responded to 23 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $30K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 87% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
117 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $45K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 26 | +13.0% | |
| 2023 | 21 | -19.2% | |
| 2024 | 24 | +14.3% | |
| 2025 | 23 | -4.2% |
For the 1 building fires Encinal departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 56 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 | 20 | 35.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Exterior, exposed surface | 4 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 7.1% |
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 Encinal mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 48.2% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 8 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 4 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 3.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Encinal departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $30,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $200 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $200 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Encinal sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 117,105 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 | 67,500 | 18.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 19,000 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,919 | 26.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,000 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,200 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 25.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,400 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 1,300 | 15.5 mi | |
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 810 | 32.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Recreation and ceremony | 800 | 46.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 800 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 676 | 38.6 mi |
Top 4 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 Encinal. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.