Alberta, VA
Alberta wildfire risk explained
Alberta sits at the 45th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 261 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Alberta at the 45th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Direct exposure dominates in Alberta: 67.1% of its 261 buildings, versus 33% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Alberta against the rest of the country
There's little gap between Alberta's 45th national percentile and its 43rd percentile inside Virginia, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Alberta ranks 17,472 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 22,812 by building count (1 is largest). Within Virginia alone, it ranks 389 of 681 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Virginia on its state page.
Alberta and the insurance market
Alberta's elevated rating (45th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Hardening a home in Alberta
Alberta's 67.1% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
Where Alberta's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 261 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Alberta. The exposure-zones guide covers what Alberta's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.