Hamlin, WV
How exposed is Hamlin to wildfire?
USFS scores Hamlin at the 73rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (well above the national norm for wildfire risk), a figure built from 580 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Hamlin's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 76th percentile nationally.
Where Hamlin's buildings actually sit
Indirect exposure is dominant in Hamlin (82.9% of 580 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 17.1% sit in the Direct zone.
How Hamlin compares
Hamlin's risk sits at a similar level relative to West Virginia (67th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (73rd) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Hamlin ranks 8,558 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,113 by building count (1 is largest). Within West Virginia alone, it ranks 141 of 429 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for West Virginia on its state page.
Hamlin and the insurance market
At the 73rd percentile nationally, Hamlin carries the high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
What would actually reduce this score
Hamlin's 82.9% 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
Hamlin's 73rd-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Hamlin, see the exposure-zones guide.