Meridian, MS: what USGS's seismic model says

USGS's ASCE 7-16 seismic design model - the same standard building codes use - places Meridian in Seismic Design Category C: 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. Rank it against the rest of the country and Meridian sits at the 68th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

How Meridian compares

The raw figures: peak ground acceleration 0.082g, short-period spectral response 0.165g, 1-second spectral response 0.084g. Among 61 Mississippi cities in this dataset, Meridian ranks 29 for seismic hazard, the 53th percentile within the state. About 33,549 people live in Meridian, Mississippi.

Retrofit economics for Meridian

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

Earthquake insurance for a Meridian 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 Meridian address.

More on how this number was built

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