Clam Gulch, AK
Clam Gulch wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Clam Gulch lands at the 90th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 177 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Clam Gulch's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 91st percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
100% of Clam Gulch's 177 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 177 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 0% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Clam Gulch against the rest of the country
Clam Gulch scores 90th nationally and 76th within Alaska — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Clam Gulch ranks 3,106 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 25,734 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alaska alone, it ranks 77 of 322 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alaska on its state page.
Clam Gulch and the insurance market
Clam Gulch's 90th-percentile, very high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
Hardening a home in Clam Gulch
With 100% of Clam Gulch 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 Clam Gulch's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Clam Gulch's 3,106-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Clam Gulch's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.