Owego, NY
Owego, NY's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Owego sits at the 21st percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,750 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Owego's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 21st percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
72% of Owego's 1,750 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 27.8% Direct and 0.2% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
How Owego compares
Within New York, Owego ranks higher (46th percentile) than it does nationally (21st) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Owego ranks 24,903 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,226 by building count (1 is largest). Within New York alone, it ranks 695 of 1,289 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New York on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Owego
At the 21st national percentile, Owego 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
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Owego (72% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Owego's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Owego's 24,903-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Owego's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.