Capitan, NM
Capitan, NM's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS scores Capitan at the 97th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 1,261 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Capitan at the 97th national percentile — 0 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Capitan's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 76.8% of Capitan's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 23.2% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 968 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
How Capitan compares
Capitan's risk sits at a similar level relative to New Mexico (92nd percentile statewide) as it does nationally (97th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Capitan ranks 918 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 10,292 by building count (1 is largest). Within New Mexico alone, it ranks 41 of 495 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New Mexico on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Capitan's very high rating (97th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With 76.8% of Capitan 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.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,261 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Capitan. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Capitan, see the exposure-zones guide.