Belfield, ND
Belfield, ND's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Belfield at the 48th national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 909 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Belfield at the 47th national percentile — 1 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Belfield's buildings actually sit
76.4% of Belfield's 909 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 20.9% Direct and 2.8% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Belfield against the rest of the country
Belfield's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Dakota (47th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (48th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Belfield ranks 16,361 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 12,647 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Dakota alone, it ranks 213 of 402 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Dakota on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Belfield's elevated rating (48th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
What would actually reduce this score
Belfield's 76.4% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 909 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Belfield. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Belfield, see the exposure-zones guide.