Kenel, SD
How exposed is Kenel to wildfire?
USFS scores Kenel at the 83rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 82 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Kenel's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 83rd percentile nationally.
Kenel's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 84.2% of Kenel's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 15.9% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 69 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
How Kenel compares
There's little gap between Kenel's 83rd national percentile and its 84th percentile inside South Dakota, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Kenel ranks 5,268 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 29,823 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Dakota alone, it ranks 72 of 439 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Dakota on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Kenel
Kenel's very high rating (83rd percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
What would actually reduce this score
With 84.2% of Kenel in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
Where Kenel's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Kenel's 5,268-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Kenel's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.