Sierra Blanca, TX
How exposed is Sierra Blanca to wildfire?
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Sierra Blanca at the 20th national percentile for risk to structures, close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a score built from 493 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Sierra Blanca at the 23rd percentile, close to its 20th-percentile risk score.
Where Sierra Blanca's buildings actually sit
493 buildings are counted in Sierra Blanca, and 52.7% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 47.3% in Direct exposure or the 0% rated Minimal.
How Sierra Blanca compares
Sierra Blanca ranks lower within Texas (1st percentile statewide) than its 20th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Sierra Blanca ranks 25,200 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,488 by building count (1 is largest). Within Texas alone, it ranks 1,774 of 1,795 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Texas on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Sierra Blanca's moderate rating (20th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Sierra Blanca (52.7% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Sierra Blanca's figures come from
Sierra Blanca's 20th-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 Sierra Blanca's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.