Highfield-Cascade, MD
How exposed is Highfield-Cascade to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, Highfield-Cascade lands at the 60th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 655 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Highfield-Cascade at the 56th national percentile — 4 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Of Highfield-Cascade's 655 counted buildings, 78.6% carry Direct exposure and only 0% carry Minimal — a lopsided split that puts defensible-space clearing ahead of vents or roofing as the intervention worth doing first.
Highfield-Cascade against the rest of the country
Highfield-Cascade's 85th-percentile standing inside Maryland outpaces its 60th national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Highfield-Cascade ranks 12,630 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 15,130 by building count (1 is largest). Within Maryland alone, it ranks 78 of 527 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Maryland on its state page.
Highfield-Cascade and the insurance market
At the 60th national percentile, Highfield-Cascade rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in Highfield-Cascade (78.6%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Highfield-Cascade's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 655 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Highfield-Cascade. The exposure-zones guide covers what Highfield-Cascade's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.