High Forest, MN
How exposed is High Forest to wildfire?
USFS scores High Forest at the 7th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally), a figure built from 119 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts High Forest at the 6th percentile, close to its 7th-percentile risk score.
High Forest's building exposure, zone by zone
92.4% of High Forest's 119 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 110 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 0% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 7.6% are Minimal.
How High Forest compares
High Forest's risk sits at a similar level relative to Minnesota (10th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (7th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, High Forest ranks 29,413 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 28,199 by building count (1 is largest). Within Minnesota alone, it ranks 822 of 914 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Minnesota on its state page.
High Forest and the insurance market
At the 7th national percentile, High Forest rates low 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 High Forest
Because Direct exposure dominates in High Forest (92.4%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where High Forest's figures come from
High Forest's 7th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what High Forest's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.