Lake of the Woods, VA
Lake of the Woods wildfire risk explained
Lake of the Woods's 2,896 buildings earn a 37th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Lake of the Woods's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 38th percentile nationally.
Lake of the Woods's building exposure, zone by zone
90.6% of Lake of the Woods's 2,896 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 2,625 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 6.5% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 2.8% are Minimal.
Lake of the Woods against the rest of the country
Lake of the Woods scores 37th nationally and 27th within Virginia — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Lake of the Woods ranks 19,930 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 5,591 by building count (1 is largest). Within Virginia alone, it ranks 499 of 681 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Virginia on its state page.
Lake of the Woods and the insurance market
At the 37th national percentile, Lake of the Woods rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With 90.6% of Lake of the Woods 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.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 2,896 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Lake of the Woods. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Lake of the Woods, see the exposure-zones guide.