McDonald, KS
McDonald wildfire risk explained
McDonald's 239 buildings earn a 45th-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.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks McDonald at the 43rd national percentile — 2 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where McDonald's buildings actually sit
Most of McDonald's buildings (89.1%) sit in the Indirect zone, where wind-blown embers rather than flame front are the mechanism USFS is scoring — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing are the interventions this pattern favors, more than defensible space alone.
McDonald against the rest of the country
Inside Kansas, McDonald sits at just the 22nd percentile even though it scores 45th 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, McDonald ranks 17,230 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 23,493 by building count (1 is largest). Within Kansas alone, it ranks 563 of 721 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Kansas on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in McDonald
At the 45th national percentile, McDonald rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in McDonald
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in McDonald (89.1% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where McDonald's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 239 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for McDonald. The exposure-zones guide covers what McDonald's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.