Canaan, VT
How exposed is Canaan to wildfire?
USFS scores Canaan at the 9th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally), a figure built from 249 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Canaan's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 9th percentile nationally.
Canaan's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 55.8% of Canaan's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 44.2% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 139 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where Canaan ranks
There's little gap between Canaan's 9th national percentile and its 3rd percentile inside Vermont, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Canaan ranks 28,790 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 23,186 by building count (1 is largest). Within Vermont alone, it ranks 172 of 179 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Vermont on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Canaan
Canaan's low wildfire rating (9th 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
With 55.8% of Canaan in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
Where Canaan's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 249 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Canaan. The exposure-zones guide covers what Canaan's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.