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F O U N D A T I O N R E T R O F I T
F O U N D A T I O N R E T R O F I T:
Many homes in Los Angeles were built using older construction practices which have proven inadequate to withstand the forces of earth quakes.
Homes built prior to 1940 were built without being bolted to their foundations. Earthquakes can move the ground and the foundation right out from under the house. Older homes were damaged or destroyed by foundation slippage in every major earthquake in Los Angeles's history.
Some wood frame homes built as recently as the 1970's were shaken off their foundations in recent earthquakes. Even though these modern constructed homes were bolted, they failed because of a lack of bracing on the cripple walls. The cripple wall is a short wall that sits on top of the foundation and supports the first floor of the house and encloses the "crawl-space." Past construction practices of installing bracing materials like stucco or wood siding on the exterior of the home only has proven inadequate. The cripple walls must be braced on both sides to reduce the risk of damage from earth quakes.
In response to the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety developed "Standard Plan No. 1", a seismic retrofit plan to reduce the risk of earthquakes.