Townsend, MA
Townsend, MA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Townsend sits at the 50th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 503 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Townsend's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 45th percentile nationally.
Townsend's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS puts 57.9% of Townsend's 503 buildings in the Indirect exposure zone, versus 42.2% Direct and 0% Minimal — a place where the fire doesn't need to reach the structure directly for embers to.
Where Townsend ranks
Compare Townsend's two percentiles: 100th within Massachusetts, only 50th nationally — a gap of 51 points that marks it as unusually exposed for its own state. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Townsend ranks 15,915 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,286 by building count (1 is largest). Within Massachusetts alone, it ranks 1 of 248 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Massachusetts on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Townsend's elevated rating (50th 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
Because 57.9% of Townsend's buildings sit in the Indirect zone, sealing the ember pathway (vents, roofing, gutters) is the intervention this page's data actually supports — see the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 503 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Townsend. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Townsend, see the exposure-zones guide.