Just when it seemed like momentum had stalled on legislation focused on advancing the life-saving retrofits for unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings, #FixtheBricks found new footing—this time in the state operating budget. The Fix the Bricks campaign is a public safety and policy advocacy effort focused on making URM buildings safer before the next earthquake. A major focus of the campaign, over… [ Keep reading ]
Landslide season is still here, so the City of Seattle is urging residents to take preventive measures to protect themselves and their property from possible landslides. Did you know that most landslides occur between the months of November and March? The threat of landslides will continue to rise as rainfall… [ Keep reading ]
Landslide season is here, so the City of Seattle is urging residents to take preventive measures to protect themselves and their property from possible landslides. Did you know that most landslides occur between the months of November and March? The threat of landslides will continue to rise as rainfall continues… [ Keep reading ]
House Bill 1810, to identify and incentivize earthquake retrofits of Unreinforced Masonry (URM) buildings, has been introduced to the Appropriations Committee for consideration. Unreinforced Masonry (URM) buildings, classic red brick buildings of common construction prior to World War II, are at risk of collapse in an earthquake due to their… [ Keep reading ]
We have officially recognized the first Unreinforced Masonry (URM) building to demonstrate compliance with the new seismic regulation in the City’s updated URM database. Congratulations to the Poll Building, 110 Union Street, and the teams of architects, engineers, and construction crews that completed life-saving earthquake upgrades to this character building…. [ Keep reading ]
We cannot predict earthquakes, but we can predict how a building performs in an earthquake. Seattle has 1,100 unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings that are vulnerable to collapse in an earthquake because they lack structural reinforcements. SDCI is supporting efforts to seismically retrofit these buildings. SDCI is coordinating with first responders… [ Keep reading ]
For the fourth year in a row, the White House declared May to be Building Safety Month. Building Safety Month highlights the importance of building codes to protect our homes, businesses, and roads against earthquakes, floods, and extreme weather. Seattle’s Building Safety Month proclamation commits to retrofitting Unreinforced Masonry (URM)… [ Keep reading ]
The City of Seattle is holding a listening session for developers and owners of URM buildings for a proposed new Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program to support seismic retrofits of URM buildings. The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) and Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) are hosting this meeting on Tuesday, February 27 from 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. in the Bertha Knight Landes Room in Seattle City Hall. You can register and view the meeting agenda for this in-person event on the Unreinforced Masonry Buildings website.
Reflecting on seismic activity in 2023, nine deadly and damaging earthquakes occurred globally. In February, Turkey and Syria experienced two earthquakes over magnitude 7.5 that killed over 59 thousand people. In September, Morocco experienced a magnitude 6.8 earthquake that killed almost three thousand people. In October, Afghanistan experienced a magnitude 6.3 earthquake that killed over one thousand people. In November, Nepal experienced a magnitude 5.7 earthquake that killed over 150 people. In December, China experienced a magnitude 5.9 earthquake that killed 149 people. Four additional earthquakes in Afghanistan, Ecuador, Turkey, and the Philippines each resulted in deaths of ten or more people. While earthquakes cannot be predicted, we know Seattle will experience a damaging earthquake in the future and we can predict how buildings will perform in an earthquake. 2023 was a year of progress and milestones in advancing the seismic resilience of Seattle’s unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings, buildings that are prone to collapse in an earthquake.
