Emporia, VA
Emporia wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Emporia at the 46th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (modestly above the national average for wildfire risk), a figure built from 2,815 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Emporia at the 46th percentile, close to its 46th-percentile risk score.
Where Emporia's buildings actually sit
2,815 buildings are counted in Emporia, and 54.1% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 45.9% in Direct exposure or the 0% rated Minimal.
Emporia against the rest of the country
Emporia scores 46th nationally and 45th within Virginia — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Emporia ranks 17,192 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 5,732 by building count (1 is largest). Within Virginia alone, it ranks 376 of 681 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Virginia on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Emporia
Emporia's elevated rating (46th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Hardening a home in Emporia
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Emporia (54.1% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Emporia's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Emporia's 17,192-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Emporia's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.