Berwick's Seismic Design Category, explained

USGS's ASCE 7-16 seismic design model - the same standard building codes use - places Berwick in Seismic Design Category B: Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Rank it against the rest of the country and Berwick sits at the 36th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

How Berwick compares

USGS's underlying values for Berwick: 0.059g peak ground acceleration, 0.118g at short period, 0.043g at 1 second. Within Pennsylvania alone, Berwick ranks 106 of 193 cities by seismic hazard - the 45th percentile in-state. Berwick has a population of about 10,332.

What a retrofit costs in Berwick

A full earthquake retrofit typically runs $5,000-$10,000 nationally (around $7,000 typical), driven mainly by house size and foundation type, not by Pennsylvania specifically. California's Earthquake Brace + Bolt grant, which covers a large share of this cost, is a California-only program and does not apply in Pennsylvania.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Berwick homeowner cannot buy a standalone earthquake policy in most cases - it is added to an existing homeowners policy as an endorsement, so the place to start is a regular home-insurance quote.

Where Berwick's figures come from

Berwick's Category B and every number above trace to USGS's own ASCE 7-16 Design Maps service - see the methodology guide. See the category explainer for what Category B does and doesn't tell you about Berwick.