Great Bend, ND
How exposed is Great Bend to wildfire?
Great Bend sits at the 20th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 108 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Great Bend at the 17th percentile, close to its 20th-percentile risk score.
Where Great Bend's buildings actually sit
73.2% of Great Bend's 108 buildings sit in USFS's Minimal exposure zone, with only 26.9% rated Direct — risk here comes from regional burn probability more than proximity to burnable vegetation at the structure itself.
Where Great Bend ranks
Great Bend's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Dakota (7th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (20th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Great Bend ranks 25,099 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 28,704 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Dakota alone, it ranks 376 of 402 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Dakota on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 20th national percentile, Great Bend rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in Great Bend
Even with 73.2% of Great Bend outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Great Bend's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 108 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Great Bend. The exposure-zones guide covers what Great Bend's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.