Mexico, PA
How exposed is Mexico to wildfire?
USFS scores Mexico at the 29th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range), a figure built from 406 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Mexico at the 29th percentile, close to its 29th-percentile risk score.
Mexico's building exposure, zone by zone
53% of Mexico's 406 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 215 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 47% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Mexico against the rest of the country
Mexico's risk sits at a similar level relative to Pennsylvania (37th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (29th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Mexico ranks 22,359 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 19,104 by building count (1 is largest). Within Pennsylvania alone, it ranks 1,268 of 1,991 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Pennsylvania on its state page.
Mexico and the insurance market
Mexico's moderate wildfire rating (29th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
What would actually reduce this score
With 53% of Mexico in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
Where Mexico's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 406 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Mexico. The exposure-zones guide covers what Mexico's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.