Bethany Beach, DE
Bethany Beach, DE's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Bethany Beach sits at the 39th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 2,116 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Bethany Beach's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 37th percentile nationally.
Bethany Beach's building exposure, zone by zone
Most of Bethany Beach's buildings (92% of 2,116) 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.
Bethany Beach against the rest of the country
There's little gap between Bethany Beach's 39th national percentile and its 42nd percentile inside Delaware, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Bethany Beach ranks 19,091 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 7,148 by building count (1 is largest). Within Delaware alone, it ranks 45 of 79 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Delaware on its state page.
Bethany Beach and the insurance market
Bethany Beach's moderate wildfire rating (39th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Even with 92% of Bethany Beach 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 Bethany Beach's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 2,116 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Bethany Beach. The exposure-zones guide covers what Bethany Beach's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.