Ashton, IA
Ashton, IA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Ashton sits at the 17th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 341 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Ashton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 13th percentile nationally.
Ashton's building exposure, zone by zone
Only 28.7% of Ashton's 341 buildings carry Direct exposure and 0% carry Indirect; the remaining 71.3% are Minimal, which shifts the risk driving this page's score toward the surrounding landscape rather than any one structure.
Ashton against the rest of the country
Ashton's risk sits at a similar level relative to Iowa (28th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (17th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Ashton ranks 26,088 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 20,546 by building count (1 is largest). Within Iowa alone, it ranks 734 of 1,017 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Iowa on its state page.
Ashton and the insurance market
At the 17th national percentile, Ashton rates low for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Even with 71.3% of Ashton outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Ashton's figures come from
Ashton's 17th-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 Ashton's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.