Big Lake (Sherburne), MN
Big Lake (Sherburne) wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Big Lake (Sherburne) at the 46th national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 4,094 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Big Lake (Sherburne) at the 46th national percentile — 0 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Big Lake (Sherburne)'s buildings actually sit
45.2% of Big Lake (Sherburne)'s 4,094 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 21.7% Direct and 33.1% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Big Lake (Sherburne) against the rest of the country
Within Minnesota, Big Lake (Sherburne) ranks higher (69th percentile) than it does nationally (46th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Big Lake (Sherburne) ranks 16,891 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 4,145 by building count (1 is largest). Within Minnesota alone, it ranks 284 of 914 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Minnesota on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Big Lake (Sherburne)
Big Lake (Sherburne)'s elevated wildfire rating (46th 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.
What would actually reduce this score
Big Lake (Sherburne)'s 45.2% 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 4,094 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Big Lake (Sherburne). For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Big Lake (Sherburne), see the exposure-zones guide.