The Cliffs Valley, SC
The Cliffs Valley wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts The Cliffs Valley at the 59th national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 513 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks The Cliffs Valley at the 60th national percentile — 2 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
The Cliffs Valley's building exposure, zone by zone
98.3% of The Cliffs Valley's 513 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 504 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 1.8% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Where The Cliffs Valley ranks
The Cliffs Valley's 59th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 15th ranking inside South Carolina does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 43 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, The Cliffs Valley ranks 13,095 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,138 by building count (1 is largest). Within South Carolina alone, it ranks 404 of 474 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for South Carolina on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in The Cliffs Valley
At the 59th national percentile, The Cliffs Valley 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
Because Direct exposure dominates in The Cliffs Valley (98.3%), 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
Every one of the two percentiles behind The Cliffs Valley's 13,095-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond The Cliffs Valley, see the exposure-zones guide.