Mekoryuk, AK
How exposed is Mekoryuk to wildfire?
USFS scores Mekoryuk at the 73rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (well above the national norm for wildfire risk), a figure built from 137 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Mekoryuk's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 77th percentile nationally.
Where Mekoryuk's buildings actually sit
Indirect exposure is dominant in Mekoryuk (51.1% of 137 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 48.2% sit in the Direct zone.
Mekoryuk against the rest of the country
Mekoryuk's 73rd national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 56th ranking inside Alaska does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 17 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Mekoryuk ranks 8,465 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,387 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alaska alone, it ranks 142 of 322 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alaska on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Mekoryuk's 73rd-percentile, high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
What would actually reduce this score
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Mekoryuk (51.1% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Mekoryuk's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 137 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Mekoryuk. The exposure-zones guide covers what Mekoryuk's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.