Shannon, NC
Shannon wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Shannon at the 83rd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 158 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Shannon's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 83rd percentile nationally.
Shannon's building exposure, zone by zone
158 buildings are counted in Shannon, and 75.3% of them sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone — flame contact, not just ember cast, is the live possibility for most of them, against 0% rated Minimal.
Shannon against the rest of the country
Shannon's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Carolina (90th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (83rd) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Shannon ranks 5,520 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 26,542 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 81 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Shannon and the insurance market
Shannon's 83rd-percentile, very 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.
What would actually reduce this score
With 75.3% of Shannon 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.
Where Shannon's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 158 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Shannon. The exposure-zones guide covers what Shannon's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.