Wiota, IA
Wiota, IA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS scores Wiota at the 51st national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (modestly above the national average for wildfire risk), a figure built from 128 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Wiota at the 51st percentile, close to its 51st-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Wiota's buildings (85.9% of 128) fall outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones entirely — that doesn't zero out the score above, it means the risk is regional, not structure-by-structure.
Where Wiota ranks
Wiota's 70th-percentile standing inside Iowa outpaces its 51st national percentile — this is a hotter spot than most of its own state, even though the state as a whole runs cooler nationally. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Wiota ranks 15,409 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,796 by building count (1 is largest). Within Iowa alone, it ranks 305 of 1,017 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Iowa on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Wiota's elevated wildfire rating (51st percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
What would actually reduce this score
Even with 85.9% of Wiota outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Wiota's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 128 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Wiota. The exposure-zones guide covers what Wiota's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.