West Wareham, MA
How exposed is West Wareham to wildfire?
USFS scores West Wareham at the 22nd national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range), a figure built from 1,365 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, West Wareham's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 19th percentile nationally.
West Wareham's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS puts 65.1% of West Wareham's 1,365 buildings in the Indirect exposure zone, versus 35% Direct and 0% Minimal — a place where the fire doesn't need to reach the structure directly for embers to.
Where West Wareham ranks
There's little gap between West Wareham's 22nd national percentile and its 28th percentile inside Massachusetts, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, West Wareham ranks 24,652 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 9,764 by building count (1 is largest). Within Massachusetts alone, it ranks 181 of 248 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Massachusetts on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 22nd national percentile, West Wareham rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Hardening a home in West Wareham
With ember exposure the dominant pattern in West Wareham (65.1% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
Where West Wareham's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,365 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for West Wareham. The exposure-zones guide covers what West Wareham's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.