Back to today’s briefing

Story perspectives

Ross Fire Reaches 5% Containment as Evacuations Ordered

8/25/2026

35 6 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

Texas A&M Forest Service fights the Ross Fire, a 50,000-acre blaze that started Monday.
By 6 a.m. Aug. 25, containment was 5%.
Highway 180 closed between South FM 4 and FM 919.
Mandatory evacuations ordered for southern Jack County near County Road 2210 and Highway 281.
Twin Lakes Recreation Center on Highway 59 in Jacksboro serves as an evacuation shelter.

History

Historical Context

Founded in 1837 and named for Baron de Bastrop, the town sits beside the Lost Pines—Texas’s westernmost pine stand that supplied lumber since 1839. The 1862 downtown fire and the 2011 Bastrop County Complex blaze, which razed 1,691 homes, revealed the area’s fire vulnerability, leading officials to adopt the coordinated response now deployed against today’s Ross Fire.

1 of 2

Story summary

Texas A&M Forest Service fights the Ross Fire, a 50,000-acre blaze that started Monday.
By 6 a.m. Aug. 25, containment was 5%.
Highway 180 closed between South FM 4 and FM 919.
Mandatory evacuations ordered for southern Jack County near County Road 2210 and Highway 281.
Twin Lakes Recreation Center on Highway 59 in Jacksboro serves as an evacuation shelter.

1 / 2