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 Farmersville responded to 131 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
520 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $632K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 88 | — | |
| 2022 | 106 | +20.5% | |
| 2023 | 105 | -0.9% | |
| 2024 | 90 | -14.3% | |
| 2025 | 131 | +45.6% |
For the 20 building fires Farmersville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 123 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 | 38 | 30.9% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 21 | 17.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 11 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 11 | 8.9% | |
| 5 | Other | 8 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 5 | 4.1% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 15 | 12.2% |
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 Farmersville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 81 | 65.9% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 5 | 4.1% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 3.3% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 3.3% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 13 | 10.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Farmersville departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $30,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Farmersville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 30,132 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 10,000 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,000 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,700 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,000 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 960 | 15.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 630 | 32.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 550 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Equipment and vehicle use | 500 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Natural | 450 | 35.2 mi |
Top 5 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 Farmersville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Farmersville.
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.