Minkler, CA
Minkler, CA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Minkler lands at the 90th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 559 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Minkler at the 92nd percentile, close to its 90th-percentile risk score.
Where Minkler's buildings actually sit
96.2% of Minkler's 559 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 538 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 3.8% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How Minkler compares
Minkler ranks lower within California (61st percentile statewide) than its 90th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Minkler ranks 3,206 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,415 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 612 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
Minkler and the insurance market
Minkler sits in California, one of two states that legally require a wildfire-risk disclosure at sale. California's FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort, ended 2025 with 668,609 residential policies after adding 21,859 in Q4 alone — the kind of market shift a 90th-percentile score like Minkler's can end up mattering for. More on the disclosure law.
Hardening a home in Minkler
With 96.2% of Minkler 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 Minkler's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 559 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Minkler. The exposure-zones guide covers what Minkler's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.