Southside, AR
How exposed is Southside to wildfire?
Southside sits at the 75th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 2,720 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Southside at the 79th national percentile — 4 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Southside's buildings actually sit
79.8% of Southside's 2,720 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 2,170 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 18.1% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 2.2% are Minimal.
How Southside compares
There's little gap between Southside's 75th national percentile and its 65th percentile inside Arkansas, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Southside ranks 7,868 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 5,895 by building count (1 is largest). Within Arkansas alone, it ranks 217 of 614 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Arkansas on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Southside's high rating (75th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
Hardening a home in Southside
Because Direct exposure dominates in Southside (79.8%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Southside's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Southside's 7,868-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Southside's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.