September 2021, Newsletter
Ali Sahabi, GEC
Principal,
Optimum Seismic, Inc.
We can’t stop forces of nature,
but can better shield communities
A devastating hurricane in Louisiana. A disastrous earthquake in Haiti. Wildfires still rage in California. We can’t stop the force of Mother Nature — but we can prepare and guard against the wrath she brings our way.
Anheuser Busch modeled this resilience when it retrofitted its Van Nuys brewery after suffering significant damage and business disruption following the 1971 Sylmar quake. When the Northridge earthquake happened 23 years later, the retrofitted buildings still stood, and business resumed just hours after the quake. The company estimated retrofits averted $750 million in damage and business losses — 60 times what was spent on the retrofits. Earthquakes will happen, but they don’t have to be disasters. Learn more at OptimumSeismic.com.
Thousands dead in brutal 7.2 magnitude quake in Haiti
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Haiti last month, toppling buildings and killing thousands. The death toll sits at 2,200, with 12,000 injured and many more missing. Seismologists reported rumblings as far as Jamaica, over 200 miles away.
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Webinar to address policies needed before disasters
We will take another look at the important topic of policies needed before disasters strike – let’s call it Seismic Policy 2.0. We’ll also examine current policy actions by the government, the financial and insurance industries, and others that can make our built environment and economy more resilient.
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Leaning Millennium Tower in San Francisco sinking faster
A retrofit of the leaning Millennium Tower of San Francisco has been suspended after crews discovered the building was sinking at a faster rate during the construction effort.
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Is a deadly fault lurking under Orange County’s mountains?
The Santa Ana Mountains are a regional treasure, providing a spectacular backdrop to Orange County. The range begins at the Whittier Fault and stretches south to the Santa Margarita River. Major summits are scattered in between. How did the ridgeline come to be? Did a dangerous earthquake fault cause them to rise?
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Aztec manuscript the oldest record of quakes in the Americas
A 16th century Aztec manuscript contains the oldest written record of earthquakes in the Americas, Smithsonian Magazine reported. One pictogram depicts soldiers drowning as a building burns in the background. Researchers matched the event to a 1507 quake that drown 1,800 warriors in a river.
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California Earthquake Authority warns of need for retrofits
Will San Diego be at the center of California’s next deadly earthquake? The odds are 99-1 that a killer quake will happen in our lifetimes, somewhere in the state. Earthquake Authority CEO Glenn Pomeroy recently warned San Diego to retrofit because the quake could easily happen there.
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135 years later, experts recall quake that shook Charleston
On August 31, 1886, one of the most powerful earthquakes to hit the East Coast struck Charleston, causing extensive damage, injury and death. “Families rich or poor all suffered in some way, said historian Nic Butler. “People died of injuries, and then exposure and shock.”
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Upcoming Events
Several Earthquake Retrofit sessions for apartment owners and monthly Resilience Advantage webinars are scheduled by Optimum Seismic to help protect our communities. Check the Optimum Seismic website for details.
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