SDCI Learns from Christchurch and #ShakeOut Reminder
September was National Preparedness Month, and it highlighted why earthquake readiness matters for everyone in Seattle. Early in the month, SDCI traveled to New Zealand to learn from earthquake‑resilience experts at the QuakeCoRE Annual Meeting. QuakeCoRE was created after the 2011 Canterbury earthquakes and brings researchers and practitioners together to help communities stay safer and recover more quickly.
We attended to share Seattle’s #FixTheBricks work and explain how we’re developing financial incentives to help property owners afford retrofits for unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings. URMs are older brick buildings constructed without steel reinforcement, which makes them brittle and at higher risk of collapse during an earthquake.
In Christchurch, staff visited the Quake City museum where a video shows how quickly a URM building collapsed during the 2011 earthquake, sending debris into the street. Even fifteen years later, the loss is still visible and deeply felt. We walked past active construction sites and empty lots where buildings once stood, reminders of families, workers, and small businesses changed forever.
These experiences reinforced a simple message: URM retrofits save lives, homes, and the heart of our city.
At the QuakeCoRE Annual Meeting, we learned that New Zealand is reducing its retrofit requirements because many building owners could not comply with earlier rules. Engineering and technical experts are concerned about the safety and equity impacts of these changes. Under the new approach, posted risk notices and basic façade improvements will replace full retrofit mandates in smaller towns and for shorter buildings. Some observers worry this lowers safety expectations, highlighting why financial incentives are essential if Seattle wants more building owners to strengthen their URMs.
We’re working to make URM retrofits more acheivable. The Alternate Method for URM retrofits, adopted in 2024, reduces design and construction costs while still lowering collapse risk. Beginning this year, we cut permit fees by 50 percent for work that contributes to a compliant URM retrofit, so more project funding goes directly toward safety improvements.
The department has also received two FEMA grants to create funding tools and partnerships. In addition, we’re supporting the Washington State Department of Commerce as it develops recommendations for statewide financial incentives to help owners move forward with URM upgrades. These efforts mean safer homes, stronger neighborhoods, and small businesses that can reopen sooner after an earthquake.
After returning to Seattle in late September, we took part in the City’s Emergency Management Symposium with the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), Fire, and Police departments. At the event, the Mayor signed an Executive Order recognizing the risks URM buildings pose. We value our partnership with OEM and the Mayor’s support as we work to strengthen how Seattle prepares for, responds to, and recovers from disasters.
Scientists estimate an 85 percent chance of a damaging earthquake in the Puget Sound region within the next 50 years. We cannot predict the exact timing of an earthquake, but we can predict how buildings are likely to behave during one, and we can choose to strengthen them.
For URM buildings, preparedness means retrofitting: tying the walls to the floors and roof so the building moves together instead of pulling apart. For people, preparedness means Drop, Cover, and Hold On.
The Great Washington ShakeOut takes place on Thursday, October 15, 2026, at 10:15 AM. It’s an ideal moment to practice Drop, Cover, and Hold On with millions of people across the state. We’re planning to participate and encourage everyone to join.
We don’t get to choose when an earthquake strikes — but we can choose how we prepare. We can protect the people and places we love. From Christchurch’s empty building footprints to Seattle’s busy neighborhoods, this work is about caring for our families, our communities, and Seattle’s future.
Let’s #fixthebricks before #thebigone.
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