Awareness and Preparedness: California Office of Emergency Services

The following is a list of some of the maps produced, accompanied by brief descriptions of the projects the maps were produced for:

Projected Peak Ground Acceleration for Possible Earthquakes Near Parkfield

In anticipation of the next event along the Parkfield segment of the San Andreas Fault, Office of Emergency Services (OES) has used HAZUS to create a reference map used in the development of a response plan to a variety of Parkfield scenarios. The map was made without specific geologic data for the region and importation of specific data is intended for inclusion in the final plan.

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Peak Ground Acceleration for M7.5 on Sierra Madre Fault

This map was made to aid a presentation to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Facility Workshop on Seismic Design.

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Site Soil Classification and Known Active Faults in the San Francisco Bay Region

This map was not made using HAZUS, but is useful to illustrate how multiple sources of information can be used to bring together data for HAZUS.

It was recognized that geologic data was especially important for modeling earthquakes in the San Francisco Bay area due to the quantity of soft soils. An effort was quickly undertaken to acquire this data for use with HAZUS. Information was drawn from USGS digital maps (available on the Internet) of the geology of the San Francisco Bay Area and Contra Costa County and from existing paper maps produced by the California Division of Mines and Geology. This effort required the assistance of a staff geologist (for categorization of site soil classes).

The final map is a mix of small scale and high-resolution maps that represent the best digital geological data available for the region. Current mapping efforts will hopefully provide detailed maps at a uniform scale in the near future.

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Peak Ground Velocity for an Earthquake on the Northern Hayward Fault and Peak Ground Acceleration for an Earthquake on the Northern Hayward Fault

These two maps were created to show effects of what could be California’s most devastating potential disaster: a major earthquake on the Hayward Fault. The maps, in conjunction with presentations by various experts, were shown to the city councils of Berkeley and Richmond to illustrate the position of their respective cities in relation to the regional impact.

The Berkeley map, in conjunction with other presentations, was helpful in inspiring the council to pass a measure authorizing the retrofit of Berkeley City Hall. The influence of the Richmond map on the policies of that jurisdiction is currently unknown.

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Rodgers Creek and San Jacinto Earthquake Peak Ground Acceleration and Bridge Status

There is a recent ongoing effort among interested agencies and organizations to create a Post-Earthquake Information Clearinghouse. Meetings have been organized by OES, the lead agency, to clarify what the roles, responsibilities, and expectations of the various contributing organizations would be following an earthquake.

During one of the Clearinghouse meetings a table-top exercise was held. Using HAZUS, maps were generated to indicate potential post-earthquake conditions for the exercise scenario quake. The maps were used to show the value of HAZUS in planning for the types of logistical problems related to post-event site access that were evident from the exercise maps.

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Housing Loss and Needs for Hayward Fault Earthquake

OES has been working with the American Institute of Architects to sponsor “charettes” where architects participate in a weekend, hands-on workshop on housing issues. A map was generated using HAZUS to provide an overview of regional impacts to housing. Though the objective of the charette was to design long-term shelters in the Tenderloin region of San Francisco, the map was considered useful in offering a regional perspective of the effects on housing caused by the scenario earthquake.

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Maps for City of San Francisco Exercise: Repeat of 1848 Hayward Event

Thirteen maps were developed to aid an exercise conducted by the San Francisco Emergency Management staff. The exercise used an earthquake scenario involving a repeat of the 1848 South Hayward Fault event. Maps generated included Displaced Households; PGA, PGV, and Critical Facilities; Bridges by Chance of Functionality; Debris Quantity; various Demographic Maps; Damage to Commercial and Residential Structures; and Casualties.

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Last Modified: Thursday, 11-Oct-2007 12:55:47 EDT

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