Sheldon, ND
How exposed is Sheldon to wildfire?
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Sheldon at the 51st national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 154 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Sheldon's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 50th percentile nationally.
Sheldon's building exposure, zone by zone
Most of Sheldon's buildings (50.6% of 154) fall outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones entirely — that doesn't zero out the score above, it means the risk is regional, not structure-by-structure.
How Sheldon compares
There's little gap between Sheldon's 51st national percentile and its 54th percentile inside North Dakota, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Sheldon ranks 15,606 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 26,715 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Dakota alone, it ranks 187 of 402 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Dakota on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 51st national percentile, Sheldon 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
Even with 50.6% of Sheldon 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 Sheldon's figures come from
Sheldon's 51st-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 Sheldon's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.