Meridianville, AL
Meridianville wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Meridianville at the 18th national percentile for risk to structures, among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally — a score built from 4,067 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Meridianville at the 21st national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Meridianville's buildings actually sit
Indirect exposure is dominant in Meridianville (54.4% of 4,067 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 45% sit in the Direct zone.
Meridianville against the rest of the country
Meridianville's 18th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 0th ranking inside Alabama does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 18 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Meridianville ranks 25,706 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 4,172 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alabama alone, it ranks 591 of 592 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alabama on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Meridianville's low rating (18th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Meridianville's 54.4% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
Where Meridianville's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 4,067 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Meridianville. The exposure-zones guide covers what Meridianville's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.