Fortuna, CA
Fortuna, CA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Fortuna sits at the 51st percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 5,590 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Fortuna at the 54th national percentile — 3 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
Most of Fortuna's buildings (82.3%) sit in the Indirect zone, where wind-blown embers rather than flame front are the mechanism USFS is scoring — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing are the interventions this pattern favors, more than defensible space alone. At 5,590 buildings, this is a substantial built environment, so the shares below describe a real population of structures, not a handful of edge cases.
Where Fortuna ranks
Fortuna ranks lower within California (11th percentile statewide) than its 51st national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Fortuna ranks 15,370 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 3,082 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 1,391 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Fortuna
Because Fortuna is in California, a wildfire-hazard disclosure is legally required before a sale closes here — unusual nationally, since only these two states mandate it. The state's FAIR Plan alone carried 668,609 policies by the end of 2025. Full detail in the disclosure-law guide.
Hardening a home in Fortuna
Fortuna's 82.3% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 5,590 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Fortuna. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Fortuna, see the exposure-zones guide.