West Bishop, CA
West Bishop, CA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
West Bishop's 1,736 buildings earn a 71st-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — well above the national norm for wildfire risk. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, West Bishop's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 76th percentile nationally.
West Bishop's building exposure, zone by zone
Indirect exposure is dominant in West Bishop (52.4% of 1,736 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 47.6% sit in the Direct zone.
Where West Bishop ranks
West Bishop ranks lower within California (29th percentile statewide) than its 71st national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, West Bishop ranks 9,161 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,276 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 1,122 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
West Bishop and the insurance market
West Bishop's 71st-percentile score lands in California, the only two states requiring a wildfire disclosure at sale. California's surplus-lines homeowners market passed 300,000 policies for the first time in 2025, driven by carriers pulling back from wildfire-exposed areas statewide. The disclosure-law guide covers what it requires.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
West Bishop's 52.4% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
Where West Bishop's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,736 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for West Bishop. The exposure-zones guide covers what West Bishop's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.