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Earthquakes

“BRACING FOR THE BIG ONE,” a special report in the Winter 2013 print edition of the San Francisco Public Press, reveals that thousands of homes remain vulnerable to earthquakes because of delays in mandatory retrofitting for problematic “soft-story” buildings. And don’t miss our illustrated guide to what you need in your earthquake survival kit.

Government & Politics

Up-to-Date Earthquake Kit Will Increase Your Survival Chances (Infographic)

02.11.2013

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By Jason Winshell, Photo Editor, Photographer and Reporter and Anna Vignet, Artist and photographer

It’s never too late to prepare for the next big earthquake. The California Emergency Management Agency advises that the first 72 hours after a disaster are critical. Electricity, gas and water may be unavailable and first responders will be busy focusing emergency services on the most serious crises. Having an earthquake kit is key to toughing it out on your own. Here’s what it should have, at a minimum.

City Hall

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San Francisco Would Post Signs Warning of Earthquake Risk on Buildings Whose Owners Fail to Retrofit

02.05.2013

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By Noah Arroyo, Editor

A plan being unveiled Tuesday in San Francisco would require the city to inform the owners of thousands of potentially earthquake-unsafe buildings that they need to retrofit at their own cost or demonstrate why not. If they don’t comply, the city would post a scarlet-letter sign on the property: “This building is in violation of the requirements of the San Francisco Building Code regarding earthquake safety.” (Listen to Public Press reporter Noah Arroyo on KQED Radio’s “Forum”)

City Hall

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San Francisco Plan Would Earthquake-Proof Thousands of Soft-Story Buildings by 2020

02.01.2013

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By Noah Arroyo, Editor

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is planning to take up a proposal to force owners of soft-story buildings to retrofit them by 2020, said a city official in charge of earthquake safety. Supervisors Scott Wiener and David Chiu plan to sponsor the ordinance and other supervisors might co-sponsor it by Tuesday. The legislation would apply only to wood-frame buildings built before 1978, with at least three stories. Unlike previous proposals, the new law would come without direct financial aid from the city. Financing questions, one official said, were “a major reason for the delay.”

City Hall

Potentially Earthquake-Unsafe Residential Buildings — a (Very Rough) List

01.14.2013

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By Noah Arroyo, Editor

This story appeared in the Winter 2012-2013 print edition of the San Francisco Public Press.
San Francisco’s Department of Building Inspection has kept a preliminary list of potentially dangerous soft-story buildings since 2009, but inspectors say it has not been verified by actual building inspections, and was never intended for public consumption. Some of the addresses the city generated might be wrong. The Public Press is publishing the list so that residents who might possibly be at risk in their homes can participate in the debate over how best to retrofit thousands of properties in coming years.

City Hall

Earthquake Retrofit Delays Leave Thousands at Risk

01.08.2013

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By Noah Arroyo, Editor and Barbara Grady, Reporter

It will take at least 7 years to secure older wood buildings dangerously perched above windows or garages
This story appeared in the Winter 2012-2013 print edition of the San Francisco Public Press.
One in 14 San Franciscans lives in an old building with a first floor that city inspectors say could be vulnerable to collapse if not retrofitted soon to withstand a major earthquake.While officials have had a preliminary list of nearly 3,000 suspect properties for more than three years, they have not told landlords, leaving the estimated 58,000 residents who live there ignorant that their buildings could be unstable.