Kezar Falls, ME
Kezar Falls wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Kezar Falls lands at the 18th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally — a figure built from its 451 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Kezar Falls's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 18th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Indirect exposure is dominant in Kezar Falls (66.5% of 451 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 33.5% sit in the Direct zone.
How Kezar Falls compares
Kezar Falls's 83rd-percentile standing inside Maine outpaces its 18th 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, Kezar Falls ranks 25,841 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 18,257 by building count (1 is largest). Within Maine alone, it ranks 27 of 155 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Maine on its state page.
Kezar Falls and the insurance market
Kezar Falls's low rating (18th 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
Because 66.5% of Kezar Falls's buildings sit in the Indirect zone, sealing the ember pathway (vents, roofing, gutters) is the intervention this page's data actually supports — see the home-hardening guide.
Where Kezar Falls's figures come from
Kezar Falls's 18th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Kezar Falls's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.