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 responded to 154 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $238K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Aircraft standby lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 51% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
833 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $3.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 135 | — | |
| 2022 | 128 | -5.2% | |
| 2023 | 271 | +111.7% | |
| 2024 | 145 | -46.5% | |
| 2025 | 154 | +6.2% |
For the 15 building fires Liberty departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 177 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 | 41 | 23.2% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 39 | 22.0% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 22 | 12.4% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 6 | Other | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 32 | 18.1% |
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 Liberty mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 79 | 44.6% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 20 | 11.3% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 10 | 5.6% | |
| 4 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 9 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Cigarette lighter | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 7 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 22 | 12.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Liberty departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $238,300 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $55,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $50,000 | Building or structure weakened or collapsed | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Liberty sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 166,769 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 14,169 | 42.4 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 13,400 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 13,000 | 43.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 9,912 | 46.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 9,000 | 46.6 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 8,358 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7,972 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7,091 | 44.8 mi | |
| 1995 | Arson/incendiarism | 6,670 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,976 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,668 | 42.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,388 | 45.8 mi |
Top 10 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. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Liberty.
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.