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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Study: Many WA Schools Face Big Risks from Earthquakes

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Monday, July 8, 2019   

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Ground-shaking new research finds many Washington state public schools are at high risk of serious damage in an earthquake.

The Washington Geologic Survey's School Seismic Safety Project looked at 222 schools across the state, or about 5% of the total.

It found that in a major earthquake, a majority of the buildings would receive a red tag, or be unsafe to occupy, and a quarter wouldn't be repairable at all.

Corina Forson, chief hazards geologist for the Washington Geologic Survey, says her team did in-depth analysis of 15 schools and found the upgrade costs ranged from $62,000 to $5 million.

"Even though the price tag seems remarkable and very high, the estimated cost to replace these buildings is much, much higher, and so investing now will help save lives and a lot of money in the long run," she states.

Forson notes the wide range in costs illustrates the need for specific site assessments.

Most of the school buildings were constructed before 1975, the year Washington adopted a statewide building code.

According to the study, Washington ranks second in the nation for earthquake risk, with the highest risk in the western part of the state.

Forson notes that tragedy could be two-fold if school buildings aren’t able to survive an earthquake because they also are community gathering spaces.

"They're the place that people go to gather with their loved ones and to seek shelter and be able to provide housing and food following a major disaster,” she points out. “
And so it's very important that these buildings can withstand an earthquake and that they can be usable following an earthquake."

The Washington State Legislature set aside $2.2 million in the current biennium to continue the School Seismic Safety Project, which will survey another 350 buildings and focus on schools threatened by an earthquake-triggered tsunami.


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