Gower, MO
Gower wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Gower at the 52nd national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 725 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Gower at the 53rd percentile, close to its 52nd-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
725 buildings are counted in Gower, and 37.5% of them sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone — flame contact, not just ember cast, is the live possibility for most of them, against 37% rated Minimal.
Gower against the rest of the country
Gower ranks lower within Missouri (37th percentile statewide) than its 52nd national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Gower ranks 15,094 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 14,392 by building count (1 is largest). Within Missouri alone, it ranks 670 of 1,062 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Missouri on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Gower's elevated rating (52nd percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in Gower (37.5%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Gower's 52nd-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Gower, see the exposure-zones guide.