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 Rockwall responded to 387 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $17.0M 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 66% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,871 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $24.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 344 | — | |
| 2022 | 429 | +24.7% | |
| 2023 | 397 | -7.5% | |
| 2024 | 314 | -20.9% | |
| 2025 | 387 | +23.2% |
For the 41 building fires Rockwall departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 483 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 | 150 | 31.1% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 51 | 10.6% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 50 | 10.4% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 34 | 7.0% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 26 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 23 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 22 | 4.6% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 12 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 11 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 11 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 93 | 19.3% |
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 Rockwall mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 275 | 56.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 38 | 7.9% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 20 | 4.1% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 19 | 3.9% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 16 | 3.3% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 13 | 2.7% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 12 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 10 | 2.1% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 10 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Radiated heat from another fire | 10 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 60 | 12.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rockwall departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $17,000,000 | Building fires | Catastrophic | Investigated |
| 2 | $800,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $471,750 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 4 | $220,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rockwall sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 18,700 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,000 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,280 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 1,000 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 960 | 30.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 700 | 45.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 630 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 508 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 14.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 500 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Natural | 450 | 37.5 mi |
Top 7 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 Rockwall. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Rockwall.
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.