Big Lagoon, CA
Big Lagoon, CA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Big Lagoon sits at the 49th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 145 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Big Lagoon at the 51st national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Big Lagoon's building exposure, zone by zone
Most of Big Lagoon's buildings (64.1%) sit in the Indirect zone, where wind-blown embers rather than flame front are the mechanism USFS is scoring — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing are the interventions this pattern favors, more than defensible space alone.
How Big Lagoon compares
Big Lagoon ranks lower within California (10th percentile statewide) than its 49th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Big Lagoon ranks 16,032 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,063 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 1,414 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Big Lagoon's 49th-percentile score lands in California, the only two states requiring a wildfire disclosure at sale. California's surplus-lines homeowners market passed 300,000 policies for the first time in 2025, driven by carriers pulling back from wildfire-exposed areas statewide. The disclosure-law guide covers what it requires.
Hardening a home in Big Lagoon
Big Lagoon's 64.1% 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
Big Lagoon's 49th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Big Lagoon, see the exposure-zones guide.