Dalton, MN
Dalton wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Dalton at the 35th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range), a figure built from 222 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Dalton at the 33rd national percentile — 1 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Dalton's building exposure, zone by zone
80.2% of Dalton's 222 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 19.8% Direct and 0% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Dalton against the rest of the country
Dalton scores 35th nationally and 44th within Minnesota — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Dalton ranks 20,608 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 24,050 by building count (1 is largest). Within Minnesota alone, it ranks 513 of 914 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Minnesota on its state page.
Dalton and the insurance market
At the 35th national percentile, Dalton rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Dalton's 80.2% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 222 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Dalton. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Dalton, see the exposure-zones guide.