La Junta, CO
How exposed is La Junta to wildfire?
La Junta sits at the 79th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 4,023 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks La Junta at the 79th national percentile — 0 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
4,023 buildings are counted in La Junta, and 95.5% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 4.3% in Direct exposure or the 0.2% rated Minimal.
Where La Junta ranks
La Junta ranks lower within Colorado (52nd percentile statewide) than its 79th 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 Junta ranks 6,649 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 4,226 by building count (1 is largest). Within Colorado alone, it ranks 227 of 472 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Colorado on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
La Junta's high rating (79th 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.
Hardening a home in La Junta
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in La Junta (95.5% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
More on how this number was built
Every one of the two percentiles behind La Junta's 6,649-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond La Junta, see the exposure-zones guide.