Living in Salt Lake County, UT, we know that earthquakes are a part of our reality. In the late winter and early spring of 2020, roughly 21 years and 7 months after the August 1999 Salt Lake City F2 tornado we experienced a 5.7 magnitude earthquake - a shake that if rounded up to the nearest whole number would be a magnitude 6.0. This was not just an event; it was the most violent wake-up call the Intermountain West has ever reacted to 

Our buildings along the Wasatch Front need to be prepared for such seismic disturbances and even stronger ones in the future. According to Utah's Department of Commerce Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing (DOPL), many structures in our area do not meet current seismic standards set by our state.

This is why we are calling on local authorities to require all buildings built prior to the 1970 timeframe along the Wasatch Front to undergo retrofitting or in other words demolition in order to meet Utah State seismic standards. As well as make way for new urban developments This is about protecting property and safeguarding lives from every other disaster the Salt Lake City area faces 

from severe storms to flooding,  earthquakes to tornadoes, fires to droughts, epidemics and pandemics.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) states that there is a 43% chance of one or more M6.75+ earthquakes occurring within this area over the next 50 years - an alarming statistic that underscores how urgent this issue is.

Utah Division of Emergency Management (DEM), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region 8, and local partners have engaged in a multi-year effort to reduce the number of unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings in Utah to zero. Our goal is to help the public understand their earthquake risk and the steps necessary to prepare and protect themselves, their family and their property.

This effort is a continuation of the “Wasatch Front Unreinforced Masonry Risk Reduction Strategy,” released by Utah DEM, the Utah Seismic Safety Commission, the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program and FEMA in March 2021. This document provides guidance to Utah communities on how to identify their own risk and take steps to address it. A key recommendation made within the strategy includes the development of an Unreinforced Masonry School Risk Reduction Program.

An Unreinforced Masonry building has brick walls with either few or no steel reinforcing bars. During an earthquake, URM buildings are more likely than modern structures to collapse, both inward and outward, and crumble on top of people, cars, sidewalks or structures in and around them destroying and killing them altogether In the 1970s, building codes in Utah were updated to outlaw the construction of new URM buildings. However, thousands of these structures remain, including some schools.

any unreinforced masonry buildings built before the 1970s decade will be subject to demolition and after the demolition occurs a new structure will be constructed in its place

I cannot afford complacency when it comes to earthquake preparedness, safety measures. We ask you, as residents and stakeholders of Utah, USA, who understand firsthand what it means when nature shakes us awake from our daily routines - please sign this petition now! Together let's ensure safer homes and workplaces for ourselves and future generations by making sure all buildings along Wasatch Front meet Utah State seismic standards!