Funding For Earthquake Safety Provided Via California Program

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People can now get money through a new program to pay for earthquake insurance. The “Brace and Bolt” program provides funding to qualified households to cover the cost of a “seismic retrofit.” The goal is to reduce the likelihood of earthquake damage.

A large earthquake with the potential to be catastrophic is a definite possibility, in my opinion, said Winter.

Olivia Winter, like other homeowners in California, is concerned about earthquakes and the potential harm they could cause to her Watsonville property.

Winter specifically requested money through the Brace and Bolt program of the California Earthquake Authority for this reason.

The initiative offers homeowners up to $3,000 to renovate the crawlspace in older homes.

It seems like an obvious choice. It’s just such an inexpensive method to strengthen your home, said Winter.

According to Janiele Maffei of the California Earthquake Authority, “older” means before 1980. “I warn people that this danger may exist if their home was built before 1980. You do have this vulnerability if your home was built before 1940.

The foundation’s bolting to the house’s frame and the installation of plywood around the crawl area are both covered by the program.

“We greatly reduce the possibility that (the house) will come off its foundation when we execute this retrofit,” added Maffei. It makes it more likely that you can remain indoors during an earthquake. The Federal Emergency Management Agency provided $80 million for the Brace and Bolt program, which has repaired 17,000 homes and has plans to adapt another 17,000 more.

We’re talking about potentially cosmetic damage worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, Maffei said. While by no means earthquakeproof, this will raise the possibility that the home will be inhabitable after an earthquake. According to Winter, there were a few procedures involved in the approval process. She submitted an application, was accepted, then conducted a contractor search and obtained some offers. Winter claims that although she had to pay the money up front, the Brace and Bolt program compensated her.

We sent the information to the seismic Brace and Bolt program when the inspection and the work were finished, and they reimbursed us within a few months.

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