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 Teague responded to 44 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
353 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 102 | — | |
| 2022 | 82 | -19.6% | |
| 2023 | 58 | -29.3% | |
| 2024 | 67 | +15.5% | |
| 2025 | 44 | -34.3% |
For the 5 building fires Teague departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 115 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 32 | 27.8% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 32 | 27.8% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 6.1% | |
| 4 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 4 | 3.5% | |
| 5 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 3 | 2.6% | |
| 6 | Wall assembly | 3 | 2.6% | |
| 7 | Other | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 26 | 22.6% |
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 Teague mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 71 | 61.7% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 17 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 12 | 10.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 5.2% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 3.5% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 2.6% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 1 | 0.9% | |
| 8 | Candle | 1 | 0.9% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Teague sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 24,509 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 | 4,689 | 27.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 3,700 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 3,000 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 2,350 | 24.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1,400 | 36.1 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 1,000 | 41.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 900 | 23.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 607 | 43.0 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 600 | 37.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 600 | 33.2 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 600 | 20.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 47.9 mi |
Top 4 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 Teague. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Teague.
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.