Marion, NC
Marion wildfire risk explained
Marion's 3,828 buildings earn a 63rd-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — well above the national norm for wildfire risk. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Marion at the 64th 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
Indirect exposure is dominant in Marion (63.1% of 3,828 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 36.9% sit in the Direct zone.
How Marion compares
There's little gap between Marion's 63rd national percentile and its 62nd percentile inside North Carolina, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Marion ranks 11,730 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 4,399 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 297 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Marion's high rating (63rd 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 Marion
Because 63.1% of Marion'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 Marion's figures come from
Marion's 63rd-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 Marion's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.