Mississippi State, MS
How exposed is Mississippi State to wildfire?
USFS scores Mississippi State at the 53rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (modestly above the national average for wildfire risk), a figure built from 406 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Mississippi State at the 56th national percentile — 3 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Mississippi State's buildings (73.4%) 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.
Mississippi State against the rest of the country
Mississippi State's 53rd national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 21st ranking inside Mississippi does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 32 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Mississippi State ranks 14,876 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 19,098 by building count (1 is largest). Within Mississippi alone, it ranks 332 of 420 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Mississippi on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Mississippi State
At the 53rd national percentile, Mississippi State rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Mississippi State (73.4% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Mississippi State's figures come from
Mississippi State's 53rd-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 Mississippi State's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.