White Swan, WA
White Swan wildfire risk explained
White Swan sits at the 98th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 410 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks White Swan at the 99th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS classifies 55.9% of White Swan's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 44.2% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 229 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
White Swan against the rest of the country
White Swan scores 98th nationally and 95th within Washington — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, White Swan ranks 710 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 19,043 by building count (1 is largest). Within Washington alone, it ranks 34 of 628 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Washington on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
White Swan's 98th-percentile, very high rating is the kind of score behind a broader national pattern: insurers pulling back from the highest wildfire-risk markets, non-renewing or declining new policies outright, most visibly in California. Shopping around, not assuming automatic renewal, tends to matter here.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in White Swan (55.9%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where White Swan's figures come from
White Swan's 98th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what White Swan's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.