Johnson City, TN
How exposed is Johnson City to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, Johnson City lands at the 67th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 25,486 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Johnson City at the 71st national percentile — 4 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
Indirect exposure is dominant in Johnson City (40.3% of 25,486 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 36% sit in the Direct zone. At 25,486 buildings, this is a substantial built environment, so the shares below describe a real population of structures, not a handful of edge cases.
How Johnson City compares
Johnson City's risk sits at a similar level relative to Tennessee (60th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (67th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Johnson City ranks 10,315 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 495 by building count (1 is largest). Within Tennessee alone, it ranks 200 of 502 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Tennessee on its state page.
Johnson City and the insurance market
At the 67th percentile nationally, Johnson City 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.
Hardening a home in Johnson City
Johnson City's 40.3% 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.
Where Johnson City's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 25,486 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Johnson City. The exposure-zones guide covers what Johnson City's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.