- Even though it wasn't the "big one," last year's
Nisqually earthquake caused damage to nearly 300,000 residences or almost
one out of every four households in the Puget Sound area, according to
a new University of Washington study. The study, funded by the National
Science Foundation, shows that the Feb. 28, 2001, quake caused an estimated
$1.5 billion in damages to households in the region.
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- The findings also indicate that the vast majority of
residents have made little effort to change their earthquake preparedness
following the temblor that registered magnitude 6.8.
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- The study is the first to focus strictly on household
damages from the earthquake. Previous estimates of damage, ranging from
$2 billion to $3.9 billion, combined loses to public, business and household
property.
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- Results of the study were reported over the weekend at
the North American Regional Science Meetings in San Juan, Puerto Rico,
by UW geography professor William Beyers, who studies economic geography.
Co-investigator of the study is Stephanie Chang, a UW research assistant
professor of geography who looks at the impacts of natural disasters.
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- The study was based on 1,200 telephone interviews, with
400 interviews conducted in each of three ground motion zones. Losses,
the study showed, were not always proportional to levels of ground motion
-- high, medium and low -- created by the earthquake across the Puget Sound
region.
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- While the percentage of households reporting losses was
directly proportional to ground motion, average damages were almost identical
in the high and medium ground motion zones. Average losses in the high
ground motion zone were $1,350, while they were $1,308 in the medium ground
motion zone. Household damages in the low ground motion zone averaged $622.
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- However, in absolute dollars, damage was greatest in
the medium ground motion zone where $913 million of the damage occurred.
That's because nearly 60 percent of Puget Sound households are located
in these areas, according to Beyers.
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- The researchers also found that:
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- * Repairs of about $800 million were primarily paid for
out-of-pocket and to a lesser extent by grants from the Federal Emergency
Management Agency.
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- * About $700 million in household damages were not repaired.
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- * Structural damages to roofs, walls or foundations were
the most common loss, accounting for $922 million, followed by chimney
damage ($198 million); damages to non-structural elements such as windows
and light fixtures ($108 million); damages to property around a residence
such as driveways and fences ($80 million); and damages to household contents
($76 million).
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- * Overall only 26 percent of those whose homes sustained
damage chose to make repairs, but those who suffered larger losses were
more likely to fix damages. Only 8 percent suffering losses under $100
said they made repairs, compared to 88 percent who had loses ranging from
$10,000 to $20,000.
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- Prior to the Nisqually quake less than half the households
had taken steps to prepare for an earthquake such as obtaining first-aid
training, making emergency plans and securing items in the house. Even
after the quake Beyers and Chang found that about four out of five households
did not change their earthquake preparedness.
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- "The quake wasn't a big enough disaster to scare
most people into doing something to mitigate future damage," said
Beyers. "A lot of people said, 'We did fine in the earthquake so we
don't need to change the way we did things.' The bigger the loss, the more
apt people were to do something, but relatively few people were really
hit hard." Public agencies wishing to promote earthquake preparedness
and damage reduction need to reach the public through a wide variety of
media, Beyers said, because people obtained information from an enormous
variety of sources. Newspapers and television news programs were the most
common primary sources, but were only cited by 22 and 20 percent, respectively.
Other sources mentioned included friends and relatives; materials distributed
by employers, Red Cross and the fire department; previous earthquake experience
in California; radio; the Internet; and pamphlets in the mail.
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- Note: This story has been adapted from a news release
issued for journalists and other members of the public. If you wish to
quote any part of this story, please credit University Of Washington as
the original source. You may also wish to include the following link in
any citation:
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- http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/11/021121070101.htm
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