Cortland, NE
How exposed is Cortland to wildfire?
Cortland sits at the 39th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 342 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Cortland at the 33rd national percentile — 6 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Cortland's building exposure, zone by zone
90.6% of Cortland's 342 buildings sit in USFS's Minimal exposure zone, with only 9.4% rated Direct — risk here comes from regional burn probability more than proximity to burnable vegetation at the structure itself.
Cortland against the rest of the country
Cortland ranks lower within Nebraska (23rd percentile statewide) than its 39th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Cortland ranks 19,257 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 20,520 by building count (1 is largest). Within Nebraska alone, it ranks 451 of 583 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Nebraska on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Cortland
Cortland's moderate wildfire rating (39th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
What would actually reduce this score
With 90.6% of buildings rated Minimal exposure, Cortland gets less benefit from structure hardening than a Direct- or Indirect-dominant place would — the home-hardening guide explains why the zone matters.
Where Cortland's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Cortland's 19,257-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Cortland's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.