Does North Augusta, SC need an earthquake retrofit?

North Augusta 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. That puts North Augusta in the 74th percentile nationally for seismic hazard - higher than 74% of the 4,875 US cities USGS was checked against here.

North Augusta by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for North Augusta: 0.146g peak ground acceleration, 0.271g at short period, 0.098g at 1 second. Within South Carolina alone, North Augusta ranks 56 of 66 cities by seismic hazard - the 15th percentile in-state. North Augusta has a population of about 26,395.

Bracing and bolting: the actual cost

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 South Carolina 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 South Carolina.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A North Augusta 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 North Augusta's figures come from

North Augusta'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 North Augusta.