Ketchikan, AK
How exposed is Ketchikan to wildfire?
Ketchikan's 2,132 buildings earn a 7th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Ketchikan at the 7th percentile, close to its 7th-percentile risk score.
Ketchikan's building exposure, zone by zone
Indirect exposure is dominant in Ketchikan (84.2% of 2,132 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 14.8% sit in the Direct zone.
Ketchikan against the rest of the country
Ketchikan's risk sits at a similar level relative to Alaska (6th 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, Ketchikan ranks 29,268 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 7,110 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alaska alone, it ranks 303 of 322 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alaska on its state page.
Ketchikan and the insurance market
Ketchikan's low rating (7th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Ketchikan (84.2% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Ketchikan's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 2,132 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Ketchikan. The exposure-zones guide covers what Ketchikan's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.