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 Hewitt responded to 75 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $125K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Arcing, shorted electrical equipment lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 56% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
471 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 87 | — | |
| 2022 | 125 | +43.7% | |
| 2023 | 86 | -31.2% | |
| 2024 | 98 | +14.0% | |
| 2025 | 75 | -23.5% |
For the 7 building fires Hewitt departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 96 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 | 18 | 18.8% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 11 | 11.5% | |
| 3 | Wall assembly | 6 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 5 | 5.2% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 5.2% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 33 | 34.4% |
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 Hewitt mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 40 | 41.7% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 12 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 10.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 9.4% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Lightning | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 9.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hewitt departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $13,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $800 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hewitt sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 38,956 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 | 6,180 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,700 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,000 | 32.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 3,000 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,887 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 32.8 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 33.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,100 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 1,100 | 49.1 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 Hewitt. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Hewitt.
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.