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 Liberty Hill responded to 211 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $1.0M building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Authorized controlled burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 70% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
986 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $3.8M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 171 | — | |
| 2022 | 233 | +36.3% | |
| 2023 | 221 | -5.2% | |
| 2024 | 150 | -32.1% | |
| 2025 | 211 | +40.7% |
For the 14 building fires Liberty Hill departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 301 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 | Outside area, other | 89 | 29.6% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 49 | 16.3% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 31 | 10.3% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 17 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 12 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Other | 9 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 8 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 7 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Wildland, woods | 6 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 60 | 19.9% |
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 Liberty Hill mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 145 | 48.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 20 | 6.6% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 15 | 5.0% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 12 | 4.0% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 11 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 11 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 10 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 10 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 10 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 49 | 16.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Liberty Hill departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,000,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $456,985 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $235,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $15,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $2,500 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Liberty Hill sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 50,967 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 | 6,500 | 22.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,180 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,700 | 40.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,000 | 47.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,887 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,106 | 21.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Equipment and vehicle use | 2,000 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 34.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 1,792 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 21.3 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 44.9 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 Liberty Hill. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Liberty Hill.
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.