Dobson, NC
Dobson, NC's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Dobson lands at the 37th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a figure built from its 775 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Dobson at the 40th percentile, close to its 37th-percentile risk score.
Where Dobson's buildings actually sit
Of Dobson's 775 counted buildings, 54.1% carry Direct exposure and only 0% carry Minimal — a lopsided split that puts defensible-space clearing ahead of vents or roofing as the intervention worth doing first.
How Dobson compares
Dobson ranks lower within North Carolina (11th percentile statewide) than its 37th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Dobson ranks 19,738 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 13,869 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 685 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Dobson
At the 37th national percentile, Dobson rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in Dobson
Dobson's 54.1% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
Where Dobson's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Dobson's 19,738-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Dobson's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.