Elsah, IL
Elsah, IL's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Elsah's 179 buildings earn a 27th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Elsah at the 28th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
78.2% of Elsah's 179 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 140 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 21.8% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How Elsah compares
Elsah's 74th-percentile standing inside Illinois outpaces its 27th national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Elsah ranks 23,157 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 25,663 by building count (1 is largest). Within Illinois alone, it ranks 370 of 1,445 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Illinois on its state page.
Elsah and the insurance market
At the 27th national percentile, Elsah 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in Elsah (78.2%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Elsah's figures come from
Elsah's 27th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Elsah's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.