Bolton, MS
Bolton, MS's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Bolton at the 48th national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 327 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Bolton at the 51st percentile, close to its 48th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS puts 61.2% of Bolton's 327 buildings in the Indirect exposure zone, versus 38.8% Direct and 0% Minimal — a place where the fire doesn't need to reach the structure directly for embers to.
Where Bolton ranks
Bolton ranks lower within Mississippi (18th percentile statewide) than its 48th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Bolton ranks 16,262 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 20,896 by building count (1 is largest). Within Mississippi alone, it ranks 345 of 420 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Mississippi on its state page.
Bolton and the insurance market
Bolton's elevated wildfire rating (48th 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.
Hardening a home in Bolton
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Bolton (61.2% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
More on how this number was built
Bolton's 48th-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 Bolton, see the exposure-zones guide.