New Chicago, IN
How exposed is New Chicago to wildfire?
New Chicago sits at the 55th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,033 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks New Chicago at the 57th national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where New Chicago's buildings actually sit
USFS classifies 98.4% of New Chicago's buildings as Minimal exposure, the largest of the three zones here by a wide margin over 1.7% Direct and 0% Indirect — a landscape-level risk rather than a building-by-building one.
New Chicago against the rest of the country
Within Indiana, New Chicago ranks higher (99th percentile) than it does nationally (55th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, New Chicago ranks 14,272 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 11,704 by building count (1 is largest). Within Indiana alone, it ranks 13 of 967 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Indiana on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
New Chicago's elevated wildfire rating (55th 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.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With 98.4% of buildings rated Minimal exposure, New Chicago gets less benefit from structure hardening than a Direct- or Indirect-dominant place would — the home-hardening guide explains why the zone matters.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,033 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for New Chicago. For more on what minimal exposure implies beyond New Chicago, see the exposure-zones guide.