La Belle, MO
La Belle wildfire risk explained
La Belle's 485 buildings earn a 49th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, La Belle's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 50th percentile nationally.
Where La Belle's buildings actually sit
La Belle rates 78.1% Minimal exposure against just 21.9% Direct and 0% Indirect — of 485 buildings counted, few sit close enough to burnable vegetation for USFS to flag them individually.
Where La Belle ranks
La Belle ranks lower within Missouri (30th percentile statewide) than its 49th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, La Belle ranks 16,173 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,613 by building count (1 is largest). Within Missouri alone, it ranks 744 of 1,062 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Missouri on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in La Belle
La Belle's elevated rating (49th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
What would actually reduce this score
Even with 78.1% of La Belle outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where La Belle's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind La Belle's 16,173-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what La Belle's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.