Wausau's Seismic Design Category, explained

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Wausau is Category A. 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 Wausau sits at the 4th percentile for seismic hazard among 4,875 US cities.

Wausau by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Wausau: 0.022g peak ground acceleration, 0.046g at short period, 0.033g at 1 second. Within Wisconsin alone, Wausau ranks 140 of 157 cities by seismic hazard - the 11th percentile in-state. Wausau has a population of about 40,262.

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 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.

Earthquake insurance for a Wausau home

A Wausau 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 Wausau's figures come from

Wausau'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 Wausau.