North Merrick, NY
North Merrick wildfire risk explained
North Merrick's 4,297 buildings earn a 20th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks North Merrick at the 23rd national percentile — 3 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where North Merrick's buildings actually sit
Only 3.2% of North Merrick's 4,297 buildings carry Direct exposure and 0% carry Indirect; the remaining 96.8% are Minimal, which shifts the risk driving this page's score toward the surrounding landscape rather than any one structure.
North Merrick against the rest of the country
North Merrick's 45th-percentile standing inside New York outpaces its 20th national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, North Merrick ranks 25,191 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 3,977 by building count (1 is largest). Within New York alone, it ranks 708 of 1,289 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New York on its state page.
North Merrick and the insurance market
At the 20th national percentile, North Merrick rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
What would actually reduce this score
Even with 96.8% of North Merrick outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where North Merrick's figures come from
North Merrick's 20th-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 North Merrick's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.