Wellston, MO
How exposed is Wellston to wildfire?
USFS scores Wellston at the 44th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (modestly above the national average for wildfire risk), a figure built from 1,097 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Wellston at the 48th percentile, close to its 44th-percentile risk score.
Where Wellston's buildings actually sit
Wellston rates 99.6% Minimal exposure against just 0.4% Direct and 0% Indirect — of 1,097 buildings counted, few sit close enough to burnable vegetation for USFS to flag them individually.
Where Wellston ranks
Wellston ranks lower within Missouri (21st percentile statewide) than its 44th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Wellston ranks 17,650 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 11,298 by building count (1 is largest). Within Missouri alone, it ranks 836 of 1,062 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Missouri on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 44th national percentile, Wellston 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
Wellston's 99.6% Minimal-exposure share means structure-level hardening matters less here than it would elsewhere — still worth the low-cost basics, per the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,097 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Wellston. For more on what minimal exposure implies beyond Wellston, see the exposure-zones guide.