Earthquake refit for vulnerable campus buildings proceeds slowly

Denny Hall is a landmark at the UW campus. Its graceful, neo-classical architecture complements the tranquil meadows and shady trees that encompass it.

And it's dangerous.

According to University assessments of earthquake readiness, Denny Hall, along with eight other buildings, is not ready to withstand a severe earthquake. The building is classified as a "high-damage/high-life-safety hazard" on a map in Associate Vice President for business services Sandra Lier's office.

Denny, Savery, Smith, Miller, Guggenheim and Gowen halls, and the Architecture, Art and Music buildings are all in this "red" category.

The Nisqually earthquake inflicted around $14 million of damage on campus, Lier explained, although initial damage estimates compiled in May were twice as high. The costs reflect the accumulated damage to buildings, library materials like shelves and books, and the cost of an asbestos cleanup in the tunnels below campus.

"We've already dealt with any safety and emergency issues," Lier said. "The libraries are now all open. Any concern about the asbestos has been dealt with. The tunnels have lots of asbestos in them, and that's been taken care of. There's no risk to the public," said Lier.

The Nisqually quake occurred relatively deep under the Earth's surface and was a type less damaging than other potential quake types, said Rob Willis, a graduate student at the geophysics department's Nisqually Earthquake Clearinghouse project.

"The Nisqually quake happened in the Juan De Fuca tectonic plate about 30 miles down. If we ever have a quake of that magnitude on the Seattle fault, the kind called a "subduction" earthquake, it'll be a different story," said Willis.

Although the UW is trying to upgrade its structures to resist the earthquake dangers posed by the Seattle fault, it's a slow process, Lier said.

"There's a seismic retrofit project underway, but we have a long way to go. It's very expensive," she said.

According to Lier, when the Nisqually earthquake struck in February, the Suzzallo Library had just undergone the main parts of the retrofit meant to strengthen the structure of the building in the face of a possible quake.

The damage to the library could have been much worse if it had not received that upgrade, Lier said.

Initial clean-up costs fell on the UW, Lier noted. But federal money is on the way from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

"Under the Stafford act, FEMA will pay 75 percent of the repair costs," Lier said, adding that "the University will have to cover at least part of the remainder. We will be able to start getting money (from FEMA) very soon."

Researchers are still trying to uncover the seismic history of the Seattle fault, according to Willis. They have already determined that devastating quakes occurred on the fault in the past. At least one such quake, in 1700, started a tsunami that caused severe damage as far away as Japan.

"We're still trying to learn about the seismic history of the region. Unfortunately, we've only had instruments for the past 30-40 years," he said.

The UW established the Nisqually online clearinghouse project to provide data on the quake and its aftermath. Its purpose is to collect and archive earthquake information, including reports, photographs and seismic data.

"This is a sort of one-stop shop for data on the Nisqually earthquake," Willis said.

"We're working on updates so that people can get all their information online."