Darby, MT
Darby wildfire risk explained
Darby's 556 buildings earn a 98th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Darby's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 99th percentile nationally.
Where Darby's buildings actually sit
556 buildings are counted in Darby, and 67.6% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 32.4% in Direct exposure or the 0% rated Minimal.
Where Darby ranks
Darby's risk sits at a similar level relative to Montana (98th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (98th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Darby ranks 606 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,478 by building count (1 is largest). Within Montana alone, it ranks 10 of 475 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Montana on its state page.
Darby and the insurance market
Darby's very high rating (98th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
What would actually reduce this score
Darby's 67.6% 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 556 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Darby. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Darby, see the exposure-zones guide.