Paden City, WV
How exposed is Paden City to wildfire?
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Paden City at the 41st national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 1,497 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Paden City at the 41st national percentile — 0 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Paden City's building exposure, zone by zone
Indirect exposure is dominant in Paden City (92.3% of 1,497 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 7.6% sit in the Direct zone.
How Paden City compares
Paden City's 41st national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 16th ranking inside West Virginia does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 25 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Paden City ranks 18,738 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 9,185 by building count (1 is largest). Within West Virginia alone, it ranks 360 of 429 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for West Virginia on its state page.
Paden City and the insurance market
At the 41st national percentile, Paden City 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 Paden City
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Paden City (92.3% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Paden City's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Paden City's 18,738-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Paden City's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.