Red Mesa, AZ
How exposed is Red Mesa to wildfire?
USFS scores Red Mesa at the 40th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (modestly above the national average for wildfire risk), a figure built from 193 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Red Mesa at the 40th national percentile — 0 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
54.4% of Red Mesa's 193 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 105 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 45.6% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Where Red Mesa ranks
Red Mesa's 40th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 12th ranking inside Arizona does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 28 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Red Mesa ranks 18,835 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 25,111 by building count (1 is largest). Within Arizona alone, it ranks 388 of 441 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Arizona on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 40th national percentile, Red Mesa rates elevated 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in Red Mesa (54.4%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Red Mesa's 40th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Red Mesa, see the exposure-zones guide.