Pellston, MI
Pellston wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Pellston at the 27th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range), a figure built from 498 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Pellston's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 24th percentile nationally.
Pellston's building exposure, zone by zone
62.1% of Pellston's 498 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 38% Direct and 0% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Where Pellston ranks
Pellston's 78th-percentile standing inside Michigan outpaces its 27th 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, Pellston ranks 23,104 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,388 by building count (1 is largest). Within Michigan alone, it ranks 166 of 745 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Michigan on its state page.
Pellston and the insurance market
Pellston's moderate rating (27th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Hardening a home in Pellston
Pellston's 62.1% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 498 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Pellston. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Pellston, see the exposure-zones guide.