Speaker 1: So we've had the fires, the floods could be coming,
Speaker 1: and so now it is time to bolt up. And
Speaker 1: it doesn't have anything to do with the LA Chargers
Speaker 1: joining wake Up. Call is the chief mitigation officer for
Speaker 1: the California Earthquake Authority. Let's say good morning to Janille
Speaker 1: mfag morning.
Speaker 2: Janille, good morning, Thank you for having me, Thanks so.
Speaker 1: Much for coming on. I know that we had talked
Speaker 1: about this in the past, but now this new program
Speaker 1: is becoming available starting tomorrow, and we want to get
Speaker 1: the word out so people take advantage of it and
Speaker 1: it's going to help protect your home against an earthquake.
Speaker 2: It's right. The Earthquake Brace and Bolt program is open
Speaker 2: and ready for registrations. It's an important opportunity to make
Speaker 2: your house more resistant to earthquake damage.
Speaker 1: Okay, so it's called earthquake Brace and Bolt. So tell
Speaker 1: us what exactly we need to do and what the
Speaker 1: money goes to. How how do people make their homes safer? Right?
Speaker 2: So this is so very important for older houses and
Speaker 2: to be more specific, if you have a pre nineteen
Speaker 2: eighty house, you might have this vulnerability. If you have
Speaker 2: a pre nineteen forty house, you do have this vulnerability,
Speaker 2: and it's the house that has a crawl space under it,
Speaker 2: under that first floor. And the older houses were just
Speaker 2: designed and built before we knew a lot about how
Speaker 2: buildings performed in earthquakes, and so it lacks bolting to
Speaker 2: the foundation and bracing around those short little walls around
Speaker 2: the crawl space, and this can be very, very devastating.
Speaker 2: These houses come off their foundation, not yet reoccupied, two
Speaker 2: and a half years later, and you're out somewhere else,
Speaker 2: living somewhere else, all the while still paying that mortgage.
Speaker 2: So earthquake Brace and Bolt has some great retrofit schemes
Speaker 2: to make your house more protected in an earthquake.
Speaker 1: Okay, so Janelle, And it's as simple. I mean, I'm
Speaker 1: sure it's not like I can't do it myself, but
Speaker 1: it's as simple as bolting the foundation and like putting
Speaker 1: the foundation and the house together so when there's those
Speaker 1: significant shaking, the house doesn't bounce off the foundation.
Speaker 2: That's exactly right. And you know, maybe Amy, you and
Speaker 2: I couldn't do it, but there are some talented do
Speaker 2: it yourselfers who actually can do this work, people who
Speaker 2: you have already got the tools. A contractor can do
Speaker 2: this in two to three days. It's really it's all
Speaker 2: under the house, and nobody's patting around your house and
Speaker 2: little Booty's and that's exactly right. They're going under the
Speaker 2: house and they're putting bolts between the wood part of
Speaker 2: the house and the concrete foundation. And then they're putting plywood.
Speaker 2: If you've got those short little stud walls, they're putting
Speaker 2: plywood and nailing it up. Like everybody's heard the term
Speaker 2: shear wall. Just nice stiff plywood that's going to keep
Speaker 2: that house over its foundation.
Speaker 1: Okay, and you can get help doing this because obviously
Speaker 1: it's not going to be free, but the California Earthquake
Speaker 1: Authority can help you pay for this.
Speaker 2: It's exactly right. What we have are grants. These are
Speaker 2: not loans, they're grants, and on average it's about fifty
Speaker 2: two hundred dollars retrofit, a little bit less expensive actually
Speaker 2: than California. And we have an up to three thousand
Speaker 2: dollars grant that's our typical grant, and then very importantly
Speaker 2: for income qualifying households, we have an additional supplemental grant
Speaker 2: that down in southern California can help and for many
Speaker 2: people might pay for the entire retrofit. So very important
Speaker 2: also is that we have the rules, and the rules
Speaker 2: are that you do a code compliant retrifit you do
Speaker 2: the entire cross space, you do it with a permit,
Speaker 2: and you significantly increase the likelihood that house is going
Speaker 2: to stay on its foundation in an earthquake. Lots of information.
Speaker 2: Our rules are going to keep you right there at
Speaker 2: that code compliant retrofit, and that permit process will keep
Speaker 2: you on schedule, and it's a grant and really really
Speaker 2: increase the likelihood that you can shelter in place after
Speaker 2: an earthquake.
Speaker 1: I love that, so kind of an ounce of prevention.
Speaker 1: Spend a little bit now, a little bit of time,
Speaker 1: and hopefully get some grant to help you with it
Speaker 1: and save your house from probably hundreds of thousands of
Speaker 1: dollars in damage. Where do they get more information?
Speaker 2: Janil So Earthquake bracebolt dot com registration open until March
Speaker 2: twenty six. And we've got fantastic people the other end
Speaker 2: of a phone or email if you have questions.
Speaker 1: Okay, great Janille Mfi with the California Earthquake Authority, the
Speaker 1: chief Mitigation Officers. Such great information again, Earthquake brace Bolt.
Speaker 1: Find out if your house is going to get one
Speaker 1: of those grants to make your house more earthquakes safe.
Speaker 1: Thanks Janaiel, thank you such good information. Just think about it.
Speaker 1: I mean, even if you had to pay for the
Speaker 1: whole thing yourself, which you say, five thousand dollars, but
Speaker 1: it'll keep your whole house from bouncing off the foundation.
Speaker 1: I mean, think of how much money that is going
Speaker 1: to save you, and especially if you can get a
Speaker 1: grant and get it paid for