Americus, KS
How exposed is Americus to wildfire?
Americus sits at the 86th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 523 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Americus at the 81st national percentile — 5 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Americus's buildings (63.5% of 523) fall outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones entirely — that doesn't zero out the score above, it means the risk is regional, not structure-by-structure.
Americus against the rest of the country
Americus scores 86th nationally and 87th within Kansas — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Americus ranks 4,343 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,981 by building count (1 is largest). Within Kansas alone, it ranks 98 of 721 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Kansas on its state page.
Americus and the insurance market
At the 86th percentile nationally, Americus carries the very high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
What would actually reduce this score
With 63.5% of buildings rated Minimal exposure, Americus gets less benefit from structure hardening than a Direct- or Indirect-dominant place would — the home-hardening guide explains why the zone matters.
Where Americus's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 523 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Americus. The exposure-zones guide covers what Americus's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.