Grand Bay, AL
Grand Bay, AL's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Grand Bay lands at the 92nd percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 1,997 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Grand Bay's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 94th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS classifies 97.2% of Grand Bay's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 2.9% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 1,940 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where Grand Bay ranks
Grand Bay scores 92nd nationally and 99th within Alabama — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Grand Bay ranks 2,413 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 7,486 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alabama alone, it ranks 5 of 592 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alabama on its state page.
Grand Bay and the insurance market
Grand Bay's 92nd-percentile, very high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
What would actually reduce this score
With 97.2% of Grand Bay in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
Where Grand Bay's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,997 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Grand Bay. The exposure-zones guide covers what Grand Bay's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.