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 Lake Jackson responded to 116 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $700K 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 55% of all calls.
Oct peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
734 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $834K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 132 | — | |
| 2022 | 189 | +43.2% | |
| 2023 | 156 | -17.5% | |
| 2024 | 141 | -9.6% | |
| 2025 | 116 | -17.7% |
For the 9 building fires Lake Jackson departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 205 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 | 29 | 14.1% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 28 | 13.7% | |
| 3 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 27 | 13.2% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 25 | 12.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 22 | 10.7% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 11 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Other | 10 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 7 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Wildland, woods | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 34 | 16.6% |
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 Lake Jackson mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 117 | 57.1% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 24 | 11.7% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 14 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 3.9% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 6 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 1.5% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 1.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 14 | 6.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Lake Jackson departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $700,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $8,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $7,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lake Jackson sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 48,186 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 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 4,028 | 16.5 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,888 | 19.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,741 | 12.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,982 | 12.6 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 2,682 | 16.6 mi | |
| 1997 | Natural | 2,550 | 13.7 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 32.2 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 2,200 | 16.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 1,765 | 16.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,622 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 14.1 mi |
Top 3 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 Lake Jackson. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Lake Jackson.
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.