Alston, GA
Alston wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Alston lands at the 69th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 152 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Alston at the 68th national percentile — 1 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Alston's buildings actually sit
USFS classifies 84.9% of Alston's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 15.1% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 129 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where Alston ranks
Alston's risk sits at a similar level relative to Georgia (62nd percentile statewide) as it does nationally (69th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Alston ranks 9,736 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 26,791 by building count (1 is largest). Within Georgia alone, it ranks 253 of 669 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Georgia on its state page.
Alston and the insurance market
Alston's 69th-percentile, high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Because Direct exposure dominates in Alston (84.9%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Alston's figures come from
Alston's 69th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Alston's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.