Marion, MS
Marion, MS's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Marion lands at the 56th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 648 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Marion at the 59th national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Marion's buildings actually sit
Of Marion's 648 counted buildings, 69.4% carry Direct exposure and only 0% carry Minimal — a lopsided split that puts defensible-space clearing ahead of vents or roofing as the intervention worth doing first.
Where Marion ranks
Inside Mississippi, Marion sits at just the 26th percentile even though it scores 56th nationally — the state's overall wildfire exposure is high enough to make this a relatively quiet corner of it. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Marion ranks 13,737 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 15,220 by building count (1 is largest). Within Mississippi alone, it ranks 310 of 420 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Mississippi on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Marion's elevated rating (56th 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in Marion (69.4%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 648 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Marion. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Marion, see the exposure-zones guide.