Union, AL
Union wildfire risk explained
Union sits at the 56th 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 140 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Union at the 57th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where Union's buildings actually sit
USFS classifies 100% of Union's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 0% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 140 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Union against the rest of the country
Union ranks lower within Alabama (14th percentile statewide) than its 56th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Union ranks 13,886 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,276 by building count (1 is largest). Within Alabama alone, it ranks 511 of 592 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Alabama on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Union's elevated wildfire rating (56th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
What would actually reduce this score
With 100% of Union in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Every one of the two percentiles behind Union's 13,886-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Union, see the exposure-zones guide.