Dolton, SD
Dolton, SD's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Dolton at the 31st national percentile for risk to structures, close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a score built from 49 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Dolton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 28th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
81.6% of Dolton's 49 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 40 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 0% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 18.4% are Minimal.
How Dolton compares
Inside South Dakota, Dolton sits at just the 4th percentile even though it scores 31st nationally — the state's overall wildfire exposure is high enough to make this a relatively quiet corner of it. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Dolton ranks 21,790 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 30,968 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Dakota alone, it ranks 420 of 439 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Dakota on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Dolton
Dolton's moderate wildfire rating (31st 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in Dolton (81.6%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Dolton's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Dolton's 21,790-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Dolton's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.