Does Bismarck, ND need an earthquake retrofit?

USGS's ASCE 7-16 seismic design model - the same standard building codes use - places Bismarck in Seismic Design Category A: Lowest seismic design category. Building code requires no seismic-specific detailing here beyond ordinary construction practice. Rank it against the rest of the country and Bismarck sits at the 7th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

Bismarck by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Bismarck: 0.024g peak ground acceleration, 0.054g at short period, 0.023g at 1 second. Within North Dakota alone, Bismarck ranks 9 of 14 cities by seismic hazard - the 38th percentile in-state. Bismarck has a population of about 77,772.

Bracing and bolting: the actual cost

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 North Dakota 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 North Dakota.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Bismarck 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 Bismarck's figures come from

Bismarck's Category A 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 A does and doesn't tell you about Bismarck.