Murdo, SD
Murdo wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Murdo lands at the 70th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 506 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Murdo's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 68th percentile nationally.
Murdo's building exposure, zone by zone
90.1% of Murdo's 506 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 9.9% Direct and 0% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Murdo against the rest of the country
Murdo's risk sits at a similar level relative to South Dakota (65th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (70th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Murdo ranks 9,367 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,247 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Dakota alone, it ranks 153 of 439 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Dakota on its state page.
Murdo and the insurance market
At the 70th percentile nationally, Murdo carries the 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.
What would actually reduce this score
Because 90.1% of Murdo'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.
More on how this number was built
Every one of the two percentiles behind Murdo's 9,367-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Murdo, see the exposure-zones guide.