Murray's Seismic Design Category, explained

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Murray is 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. That puts Murray in the 89th percentile nationally for seismic hazard - higher than 89% of the 4,875 US cities USGS was checked against here.

Murray by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Murray: 0.452g peak ground acceleration, 0.78g at short period, 0.272g at 1 second. Within Kentucky alone, Murray ranks 3 of 79 cities by seismic hazard - the 97th percentile in-state. Murray has a population of about 18,567.

Retrofit economics for Murray

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 Kentucky 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 Kentucky.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Murray 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 Murray's figures come from

Murray'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 Murray.