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 Pharr responded to 207 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 69% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,328 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $939K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 228 | — | |
| 2022 | 271 | +18.9% | |
| 2023 | 390 | +43.9% | |
| 2024 | 232 | -40.5% | |
| 2025 | 207 | -10.8% |
For the 3 building fires Pharr departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 293 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 | 75 | 25.6% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 53 | 18.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 32 | 10.9% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 28 | 9.6% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 19 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 11 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 10 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 10 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 6 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 5 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 44 | 15.0% |
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 Pharr mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 174 | 59.4% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 22 | 7.5% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 22 | 7.5% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 17 | 5.8% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 11 | 3.8% | |
| 6 | Match | 8 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Incendiary device | 5 | 1.7% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 5 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Candle | 5 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 1.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 20 | 6.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Pharr departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $26,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $10,000 | Outside storage fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $3,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Pharr sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 70,038 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25,600 | 27.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,000 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,600 | 17.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Debris and open burning | 2,500 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 2,300 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,200 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,900 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,600 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Debris and open burning | 1,500 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 17.9 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 Pharr. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Pharr.
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.