The Shakeout Scenario Supplemental Study Fire Following Earthquake PDF Download

Directly attributable to these fires following the earthquake will be the loss of hundreds to perhaps a thousand lives, and an economic loss of forty to perhaps as much as one hundred billion dollars. This loss is virtually fully insured and could result in distortions in the US and global insurance industry. Other economic impacts include the loss of perhaps a billion dollars in local tax revenues. A number of opportunities exist for mitigating this problem, including construction of a seismically reliable basin-wide saltwater pumping system, and the mandatory use of automated gas shut-off valves, or seismic shut-off gas meters, in densely built areas.