Pemberton, NJ
How exposed is Pemberton to wildfire?
Pemberton's 639 buildings earn a 64th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — well above the national norm for wildfire risk. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Pemberton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 63rd percentile nationally.
Pemberton's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS puts 72.5% of Pemberton's 639 buildings in the Indirect exposure zone, versus 27.5% Direct and 0% Minimal — a place where the fire doesn't need to reach the structure directly for embers to.
Pemberton against the rest of the country
Pemberton's risk sits at a similar level relative to New Jersey (73rd percentile statewide) as it does nationally (64th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Pemberton ranks 11,511 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 15,343 by building count (1 is largest). Within New Jersey alone, it ranks 191 of 700 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New Jersey on its state page.
Pemberton and the insurance market
Pemberton's 64th-percentile, high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Pemberton (72.5% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Pemberton's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 639 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Pemberton. The exposure-zones guide covers what Pemberton's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.