Vernon Center, NJ
Vernon Center wildfire risk explained
Vernon Center sits at the 44th 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 498 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Vernon Center at the 43rd percentile, close to its 44th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
52.6% of Vernon Center's 498 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 47.4% Direct and 0% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
Where Vernon Center ranks
There's little gap between Vernon Center's 44th national percentile and its 49th percentile inside New Jersey, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Vernon Center ranks 17,553 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,391 by building count (1 is largest). Within New Jersey alone, it ranks 357 of 700 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New Jersey on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 44th national percentile, Vernon Center rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Vernon Center (52.6% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where Vernon Center's figures come from
Vernon Center's 44th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Vernon Center's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.