(CSi)  A new study has found that the state of North Dakota has the No. 5 highest concentration of active and reservist military members of any state with 1,540.60 service members per 100,000 residents. The national average is 780 per 100,000.

(AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Military enlistment has declined dramatically over the past several decades, falling from about 3.5 million at the height of the Vietnam War to just 1.3 million active-duty service members today. Yet, with hundreds of thousands of men and women deployed across the world and some-7,000 lives claimed in the war against terrorism, the stakes for military families have never been higher.

Security.org today released its study, States Carrying the Greatest Military Burden, which analyzes U.S. Department of Defense data on military service, including where service members are stationed, which types of people are most likely to join the military and which states have seen the highest numbers of in-service deaths.

 

Here are key findings in North Dakota:

 

  • North Dakota has the No. 5 highest population-adjusted rate of active-duty and reserve personnel stationed in the state (1,540.60 per 100,000) and the No. 39 highest overall number (11,710).
  • About 8% of North Dakota residents are military veterans.
  • North Dakota Military War Death Rates: Korean (28.57 per 100,000), Vietnam (32.21), Gulf (0.16) and Terrorism (2.85).

 

Here are key national findings:

 

  • California (214,922) has the highest overall number of active-duty and reserve/National Guard service members. Vermont (3,575) has the lowest.
  • Michigan’s population-adjusted rate of current military service is the lowest in the country, 174.6 per 100,000.
  • 7.3% of Americans are military veterans, though when looking only at men, that number rises to 13.6%.
  • In only two states did the Korean War claim a larger concentration of lives than the Vietnam War — Hawaii (81.43 per 100,000) and Vermont (24.88).