Jewell Ridge, VA
Jewell Ridge, VA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS scores Jewell Ridge at the 88th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 126 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Jewell Ridge at the 91st national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
100% of Jewell Ridge's 126 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 126 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 0% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Jewell Ridge against the rest of the country
There's little gap between Jewell Ridge's 88th national percentile and its 97th percentile inside Virginia, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Jewell Ridge ranks 3,670 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,921 by building count (1 is largest). Within Virginia alone, it ranks 19 of 681 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Virginia on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 88th percentile nationally, Jewell Ridge carries the very 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.
Hardening a home in Jewell Ridge
Because Direct exposure dominates in Jewell Ridge (100%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Jewell Ridge's 88th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Jewell Ridge, see the exposure-zones guide.