Cleaton, KY
Cleaton wildfire risk explained
Cleaton sits at the 47th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 177 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Cleaton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 49th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
78% of Cleaton's 177 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 138 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 22% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How Cleaton compares
Cleaton's 76th-percentile standing inside Kentucky outpaces its 47th national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Cleaton ranks 16,702 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 25,751 by building count (1 is largest). Within Kentucky alone, it ranks 134 of 552 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Kentucky on its state page.
Cleaton and the insurance market
Cleaton's elevated rating (47th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Hardening a home in Cleaton
Because Direct exposure dominates in Cleaton (78%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Every one of the two percentiles behind Cleaton's 16,702-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Cleaton, see the exposure-zones guide.