Elkins, WV: what USGS's seismic model says

USGS's ASCE 7-16 seismic design model - the same standard building codes use - places Elkins in Seismic Design Category B: Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. That puts Elkins in the 31th percentile nationally for seismic hazard - higher than 31% of the 4,875 US cities USGS was checked against here.

Where Elkins sits in West Virginia

The raw figures: peak ground acceleration 0.053g, short-period spectral response 0.109g, 1-second spectral response 0.051g. Among 26 West Virginia cities in this dataset, Elkins ranks 18 for seismic hazard, the 32th percentile within the state. About 6,698 people live in Elkins, West Virginia.

Retrofit economics for Elkins

Outside California, no state-level retrofit grant equivalent to Brace + Bolt could be found for West Virginia. A typical retrofit still runs $5,000-$10,000 nationally, about $7,000 for a common single-family job.

Earthquake insurance for a Elkins home

Outside California, earthquake coverage is typically sold as an endorsement added to a standard homeowners policy, not a separate product - worth asking about directly when getting a home-insurance quote for a Elkins address.

More on how this number was built

The methodology guide covers exactly how USGS's public design-maps API produced Elkins's numbers. The guide to what a Seismic Design Category actually means covers why a category is never a substitute for an engineer's assessment of one specific house.