Benton, MS
Benton, MS's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Benton lands at the 69th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 312 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Benton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 71st percentile nationally.
Where Benton's buildings actually sit
100% of Benton's 312 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 312 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 0% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How Benton compares
Inside Mississippi, Benton sits at just the 53rd percentile even though it scores 69th nationally — the state's overall wildfire exposure is high enough to make this a relatively quiet corner of it. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Benton ranks 9,863 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 21,318 by building count (1 is largest). Within Mississippi alone, it ranks 199 of 420 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Mississippi on its state page.
Benton and the insurance market
At the 69th percentile nationally, Benton carries the 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
Benton's 100% 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.
More on how this number was built
Benton's 69th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Benton, see the exposure-zones guide.