St. James, NC
St. James, NC's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS scores St. James at the 89th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 3,256 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks St. James at the 86th national percentile — 4 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
St. James's building exposure, zone by zone
Direct exposure dominates in St. James: 59.6% of its 3,256 buildings, versus 40.4% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
St. James against the rest of the country
St. James's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Carolina (98th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (89th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, St. James ranks 3,410 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 5,095 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 19 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in St. James
At the 89th percentile nationally, St. James carries the very 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.
Hardening a home in St. James
Because Direct exposure dominates in St. James (59.6%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
St. James's 89th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond St. James, see the exposure-zones guide.