Jonesboro's Seismic Design Category, explained

USGS's ASCE 7-16 seismic design model - the same standard building codes use - places Jonesboro in Seismic Design Category D: 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 Jonesboro sits at the 96th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

Jonesboro by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Jonesboro: 0.718g peak ground acceleration, 1.189g at short period, 0.411g at 1 second. Within Arkansas alone, Jonesboro ranks 5 of 68 cities by seismic hazard - the 94th percentile in-state. Jonesboro has a population of about 82,384.

Retrofit economics for Jonesboro

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 Arkansas 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 Arkansas.

Earthquake insurance for a Jonesboro home

A Jonesboro 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 Jonesboro's figures come from

Jonesboro'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 Jonesboro.