In 2025, fire departments serving Ross responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents . 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 41% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
378 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $500 cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 67 | — | |
| 2022 | 64 | -4.5% | |
| 2023 | 104 | +62.5% | |
| 2024 | 97 | -6.7% | |
| 2025 | 46 | -52.6% |
For the 1 building fires Ross departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 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 | 11 | 24.4% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 9 | 20.0% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 13.3% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 13.3% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 6.7% |
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 Ross mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 66.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 1 | 2.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Ross sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,450 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 260 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 173 | 42.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 152 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 106 | 31.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 78 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 76 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 60 | 44.5 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 48 | 29.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 45 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 41 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 38 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 43.1 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 Pennsylvania cities with population within ±25% of Ross. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
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.