Edgartown, MA
How exposed is Edgartown to wildfire?
Edgartown sits at the 29th 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 1,686 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Edgartown at the 20th national percentile — 9 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Edgartown's building exposure, zone by zone
54.8% of Edgartown's 1,686 buildings sit in USFS's Minimal exposure zone, with only 11.1% rated Direct — risk here comes from regional burn probability more than proximity to burnable vegetation at the structure itself.
Edgartown against the rest of the country
Within Massachusetts, Edgartown ranks higher (73rd percentile) than it does nationally (29th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Edgartown ranks 22,250 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,474 by building count (1 is largest). Within Massachusetts alone, it ranks 65 of 248 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Massachusetts on its state page.
Edgartown and the insurance market
At the 29th national percentile, Edgartown 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
Even with 54.8% of Edgartown outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Edgartown's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Edgartown's 22,250-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Edgartown's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.