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 Webster responded to 132 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $750K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 49% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
630 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 127 | — | |
| 2022 | 138 | +8.7% | |
| 2023 | 128 | -7.2% | |
| 2024 | 105 | -18.0% | |
| 2025 | 132 | +25.7% |
For the 26 building fires Webster departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 172 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 | 60 | 34.9% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 30 | 17.4% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 12 | 7.0% | |
| 4 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 8 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 6 | 3.5% | |
| 6 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 6 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 5 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Wall assembly | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 34 | 19.8% |
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 Webster mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 109 | 63.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 5.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 5.2% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 9 | 5.2% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 2.9% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Conducted heat from another fire | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 1.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 15 | 8.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Webster departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $750,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $479,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $20,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $18,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Webster sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 63,449 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 | 6,426 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,976 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,260 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 5,021 | 38.4 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 4,028 | 26.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4,016 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 3,741 | 48.6 mi | |
| 1997 | Natural | 2,550 | 29.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 2,254 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 2,250 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,116 | 46.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,873 | 44.5 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 Webster. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Webster.
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.