West Pocomoke, MD
West Pocomoke wildfire risk explained
West Pocomoke sits at the 71st percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 489 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks West Pocomoke at the 71st national percentile — 0 points below its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
Where West Pocomoke's buildings actually sit
78.5% of West Pocomoke's 489 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 384 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 21.5% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How West Pocomoke compares
Compare West Pocomoke's two percentiles: 93rd within Maryland, only 71st nationally — a gap of 22 points that marks it as unusually exposed for its own state. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, West Pocomoke ranks 9,051 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,548 by building count (1 is largest). Within Maryland alone, it ranks 37 of 527 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Maryland on its state page.
West Pocomoke and the insurance market
At the 71st percentile nationally, West Pocomoke carries the 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.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With 78.5% of West Pocomoke in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
West Pocomoke's 71st-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond West Pocomoke, see the exposure-zones guide.