Emmaus, PA: what USGS's seismic model says

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Emmaus is Category B. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Nationally, Emmaus ranks above 54% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 54th percentile.

How Emmaus compares

The raw figures: peak ground acceleration 0.093g, short-period spectral response 0.17g, 1-second spectral response 0.047g. Among 193 Pennsylvania cities in this dataset, Emmaus ranks 58 for seismic hazard, the 70th percentile within the state. About 12,314 people live in Emmaus, Pennsylvania.

What a retrofit costs in Emmaus

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

Earthquake insurance for a Emmaus 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 Emmaus address.

More on how this number was built

The methodology guide covers exactly how USGS's public design-maps API produced Emmaus'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.