Clayton, AL
Clayton wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Clayton at the 69th national percentile for risk to structures, well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a score built from 969 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Clayton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 70th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
969 buildings are counted in Clayton, and 81% of them sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone — flame contact, not just ember cast, is the live possibility for most of them, against 0% rated Minimal.
Clayton against the rest of the country
Clayton ranks lower within Alabama (43rd percentile statewide) than its 69th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Clayton ranks 9,883 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 12,155 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alabama alone, it ranks 335 of 592 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alabama on its state page.
Clayton and the insurance market
Clayton's 69th-percentile, 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 Clayton
With 81% of Clayton 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 Clayton's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Clayton's 9,883-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Clayton's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.