Wendell, ID
Wendell, ID's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Wendell lands at the 87th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 1,361 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Wendell at the 87th percentile, close to its 87th-percentile risk score.
Where Wendell's buildings actually sit
65.7% of Wendell's 1,361 buildings fall in USFS's Indirect exposure zone — ember cast rather than direct flame — against 12.9% Direct and 21.4% Minimal. Vent screens and roofing material matter more here than lot clearing alone.
How Wendell compares
Wendell's 87th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 61st ranking inside Idaho does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 26 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Wendell ranks 4,063 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 9,778 by building count (1 is largest). Within Idaho alone, it ranks 92 of 232 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Idaho on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 87th percentile nationally, Wendell carries the very high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
What would actually reduce this score
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in Wendell (65.7% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,361 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Wendell. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Wendell, see the exposure-zones guide.