Gakona, AK
How exposed is Gakona to wildfire?
Gakona sits at the 95th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 238 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Gakona at the 93rd national percentile — 2 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Gakona's building exposure, zone by zone
95% of Gakona's 238 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 226 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 5% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Where Gakona ranks
Gakona's risk sits at a similar level relative to Alaska (85th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (95th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Gakona ranks 1,531 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 23,517 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alaska alone, it ranks 49 of 322 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alaska on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Gakona's very high rating (95th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Gakona's 95% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
Where Gakona's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Gakona's 1,531-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Gakona's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.