LIVING IN EARTHQUAKE COUNTRY

The San Francisco Bay area is very vulnerable to earthquake damage because of its concentration of population and facilities in a dense narrow corridor along a major fault line. This article discusses the damage that a major earthquake could do to the area in terms of displacing residents, cutting off public utilities and closing highways. Recognizing this potential threat, steps are being taken to improve the vulnerable infrastructure. Hospitals, government buildings and the Golden Gate and Bay bridges are being retrofitted, and $1.3 billion in seismic upgrades are being planned for the Bay Area Rapid Transit system. New legislative initiatives, new technologies and proposals for mandatory insurance programs are being considered to lessen the catastrophe threatened by a large earthquake in the region.