Mission, SD
Mission wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Mission lands at the 86th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 453 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Mission's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 84th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Mission's buildings (86.1%) 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.
Where Mission ranks
Mission scores 86th nationally and 87th within South Dakota — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Mission ranks 4,295 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 18,229 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Dakota alone, it ranks 58 of 439 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Dakota on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Mission
At the 86th percentile nationally, Mission carries the very high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Because 86.1% of Mission's buildings sit in the Indirect zone, sealing the ember pathway (vents, roofing, gutters) is the intervention this page's data actually supports — see the home-hardening guide.
Where Mission's figures come from
Mission's 86th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Mission's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.