Juneau's Seismic Design Category, explained

Juneau carries Seismic Design Category C under USGS's ASCE 7-16 model. Moderate seismic hazard. Code adds irregular-building restrictions and requires bracing of some nonstructural components (e.g. tall shelving, water heaters) in addition to structural detailing. Nationally, Juneau ranks above 76% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 76th percentile.

How Juneau compares

USGS's underlying values for Juneau: 0.176g peak ground acceleration, 0.459g at short period, 0.324g at 1 second. Within Alaska alone, Juneau ranks 9 of 11 cities by seismic hazard - the 20th percentile in-state. Juneau has a population of about 31,572.

What a retrofit costs in Juneau

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 Alaska 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 Alaska.

Earthquake insurance for a Juneau home

A Juneau 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 Juneau's figures come from

Juneau's Category C 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 C does and doesn't tell you about Juneau.