Pendleton, SC
Pendleton wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Pendleton at the 65th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (well above the national norm for wildfire risk), a figure built from 1,766 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Pendleton's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 68th percentile nationally.
Where Pendleton's buildings actually sit
Direct exposure dominates in Pendleton: 65.6% of its 1,766 buildings, versus 34.4% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Where Pendleton ranks
Inside South Carolina, Pendleton sits at just the 33rd percentile even though it scores 65th 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, Pendleton ranks 11,201 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,174 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Carolina alone, it ranks 319 of 474 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Carolina on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Pendleton's high rating (65th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
What would actually reduce this score
With 65.6% of Pendleton 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 1,766 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Pendleton. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Pendleton, see the exposure-zones guide.