Onalaska, WI: what USGS's seismic model says

Onalaska carries Seismic Design Category A under USGS's ASCE 7-16 model. Lowest seismic design category. Building code requires no seismic-specific detailing here beyond ordinary construction practice. Rank it against the rest of the country and Onalaska sits at the 8th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

Where Onalaska sits in Wisconsin

USGS's underlying values for Onalaska: 0.025g peak ground acceleration, 0.051g at short period, 0.039g at 1 second. Within Wisconsin alone, Onalaska ranks 112 of 157 cities by seismic hazard - the 29th percentile in-state. Onalaska has a population of about 19,898.

Retrofit economics for Onalaska

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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Onalaska 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 Onalaska's figures come from

Onalaska's Category A 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 A does and doesn't tell you about Onalaska.