Rochester, TX
How exposed is Rochester to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, Rochester lands at the 33rd percentile for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a figure built from its 273 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Rochester at the 29th national percentile — 4 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Rochester's buildings actually sit
Rochester rates 68.1% Minimal exposure against just 31.9% Direct and 0% Indirect — of 273 buildings counted, few sit close enough to burnable vegetation for USFS to flag them individually.
How Rochester compares
Rochester ranks lower within Texas (3rd percentile statewide) than its 33rd national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Rochester ranks 21,132 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 22,433 by building count (1 is largest). Within Texas alone, it ranks 1,749 of 1,795 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Texas on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Rochester
At the 33rd national percentile, Rochester rates moderate 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
Even with 68.1% of Rochester outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Rochester's figures come from
Rochester's 33rd-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Rochester's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.