Santee, SC
How exposed is Santee to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, Santee lands at the 75th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 605 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Santee's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 73rd percentile nationally.
Where Santee's buildings actually sit
Direct exposure dominates in Santee: 52.1% of its 605 buildings, versus 47.9% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Santee against the rest of the country
Santee's risk sits at a similar level relative to South Carolina (74th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (75th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Santee ranks 7,824 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 15,774 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Carolina alone, it ranks 123 of 474 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Carolina on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Santee
At the 75th percentile nationally, Santee carries the high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Santee's 52.1% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 605 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Santee. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Santee, see the exposure-zones guide.