Carson's Seismic Design Category, explained

Carson carries Seismic Design Category D under USGS's ASCE 7-16 model. High seismic hazard - this is the category most of coastal California, the Pacific Northwest, and other active fault regions fall into. Code mandates significant seismic detailing and restricts irregular structural configurations. This is the category the Brace + Bolt scope (cripple-wall bracing, foundation bolting) is built for. Rank it against the rest of the country and Carson sits at the 98th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

How Carson compares

USGS's underlying values for Carson: 0.86g peak ground acceleration, 2.014g at short period, 0.727g at 1 second. Within Nevada alone, Carson ranks 1 of 12 cities by seismic hazard - the 100th percentile in-state. Carson has a population of about 58,148.

Retrofit economics for Carson

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 Nevada 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 Nevada.

Earthquake insurance for a Carson home

A Carson 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 Carson's figures come from

Carson's Category D 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 D does and doesn't tell you about Carson.