Opal, WY
How exposed is Opal to wildfire?
Opal sits at the 51st 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 89 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Opal at the 46th percentile, close to its 51st-percentile risk score.
Opal's building exposure, zone by zone
Direct exposure dominates in Opal: 65.2% of its 89 buildings, versus 34.8% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Where Opal ranks
Inside Wyoming, Opal sits at just the 7th percentile even though it scores 51st nationally — the state's overall wildfire exposure is high enough to make this a relatively quiet corner of it. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Opal ranks 15,619 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 29,557 by building count (1 is largest). Within Wyoming alone, it ranks 180 of 192 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Wyoming on its state page.
Opal and the insurance market
At the 51st national percentile, Opal rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in Opal
With 65.2% of Opal in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 89 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Opal. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Opal, see the exposure-zones guide.