Union, NH
Union wildfire risk explained
USFS scores Union at the 19th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally), a figure built from 134 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Union at the 18th national percentile — 0 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Union's buildings (60.5%) sit in the Indirect zone, where wind-blown embers rather than flame front are the mechanism USFS is scoring — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing are the interventions this pattern favors, more than defensible space alone.
How Union compares
Union's 56th-percentile standing inside New Hampshire outpaces its 19th national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Union ranks 25,659 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,552 by building count (1 is largest). Within New Hampshire alone, it ranks 46 of 100 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New Hampshire on its state page.
Union and the insurance market
Union's low rating (19th 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
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Union (60.5% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Union's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 134 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Union. The exposure-zones guide covers what Union's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.