West Ocean City, MD
How exposed is West Ocean City to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, West Ocean City lands at the 44th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 3,020 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, West Ocean City's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 42nd percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of West Ocean City's buildings (55.5%) 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.
Where West Ocean City ranks
Within Maryland, West Ocean City ranks higher (64th percentile) than it does nationally (44th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, West Ocean City ranks 17,516 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 5,396 by building count (1 is largest). Within Maryland alone, it ranks 191 of 527 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Maryland on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in West Ocean City
At the 44th national percentile, West Ocean City 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 West Ocean City (55.5% 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
West Ocean City's 44th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond West Ocean City, see the exposure-zones guide.