Carlton, MN
How exposed is Carlton to wildfire?
USFS scores Carlton at the 33rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range), a figure built from 571 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Carlton at the 33rd national percentile — 1 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Carlton's building exposure, zone by zone
571 buildings are counted in Carlton, and 52% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 48% in Direct exposure or the 0% rated Minimal.
Where Carlton ranks
There's little gap between Carlton's 33rd national percentile and its 41st percentile inside Minnesota, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Carlton ranks 21,021 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,235 by building count (1 is largest). Within Minnesota alone, it ranks 537 of 914 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Minnesota on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 33rd national percentile, Carlton rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in Carlton
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Carlton (52% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Carlton's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Carlton's 21,021-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Carlton's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.