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Tampa, FL - Today’s large earthquake that shook Seattle, Washington, and portions of the northwest United States is a reminder that there are simple and inexpensive steps that homeowners can take to protect their property and families from damage and injury.
The Institute for Business & Home Safety offers the following tips:
Inside Your House
- Anchor bookcases and filing cabinets to nearby walls.
- Install latches on drawers and cabinet doors to keep contents from spilling.
- Install ledge barriers on shelves, place heavy items on lower shelves, and secure large, heavy items and breakables directly to shelves to keep them from falling.
- Use closed screw-eyes and wire to securely attach pictures and mirrors to the walls.
- Attach computers and small appliances to desks, tables or countertops.
- Secure ceiling lights, suspended ceilings and other hanging items such as chandeliers and plants to the permanent structure of your house.
- Apply safety film to windows and glass doors.
- Anchor large appliances to walls using safety cables or straps.
- Lock the rollers of any large appliances or pieces of furniture.
- Secure water heater(s) to nearby walls.
- Fit all gas appliances with flexible connections and/or a breakaway gas shut-off device, or install a main gas shut-off device. (Check your local building codes to determine whether you may install flexible connectors yourself or whether a professional must install them.)
The House Itself
An earthquake puts your home’s structure to the test: it must absorb the earthquake’s energy and provide a stable path to transfer these forces back into the ground. Your home is more likely to pass this test when it is properly tied together. That is, when the roof is attached tightly to the walls, the walls are fastened to each other and, finally, when the walls are braced and anchored to a strong foundation. If the structural elements of your home need reinforcing, some of the most important and common retrofits include:
- Adding anchor bolts or steel plates between your home and its foundation.
- Bracing the inside of your home’s cripple wall — the short wood-stud wall between the top of the foundation wall and the first floor — with sheathing.
- Bracing unreinforced chimneys, masonry and concrete walls and foundations.
"Protect Your Home Against Earthquake Damage" is available at www.ibhs.org or by calling toll-free 1-888-286-2624.
IBHS is an initiative of the insurance industry to reduce deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering caused by natural disasters.
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