Earthquake safety czar appointed in San Francisco
October 17 was the anniversary of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, still well remembered here in San Francisco. The 18th was the date of the Great Shakeout, a state-wide earthquake preparedness drill. With all this attention on earthquakes, it was the perfect time for San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee to announce the appointment of a director of earthquake safety.
This newly created position will be responsible for implementing a 30-year plan to reduce the City's most dangerous earthquake risks such as the soft-story buildings that failed so dramatically during Loma Prieta. The appointee, Patrick Otellini, is a veteran building inspector and building permit consultant and expediter and no stranger to the intricacies of the City's builing code process. From what I glean from the news reports, he will report to the City Administrator rather than the Director of Emergency Services, which, while not ideal, could actually increase Ottelini's ability to get things done by broadening his political support base.
To the best of my knowledge, this is something incredibly unique. Mitigation of hazards is something to which municipalities generally give only lip service. The appointment of a specific individual to drive earthquake mitigation with the attendant public visibility and transparency is a major commitment on the part of San Francisco and is to be commended.