Butte, ND
Butte, ND's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Butte sits at the 56th 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 219 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Butte's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 54th percentile nationally.
Butte's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 51.1% of Butte's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 48.9% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 112 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Butte against the rest of the country
Butte's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Dakota (65th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (56th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Butte ranks 13,844 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 24,165 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Dakota alone, it ranks 140 of 402 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Dakota on its state page.
Butte and the insurance market
Butte's elevated wildfire rating (56th 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in Butte (51.1%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Butte's 56th-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 Butte, see the exposure-zones guide.