Earthquake hazard
Earthquake hazard indicates how often earthquakes might occur in a given location and how strong the shaking is likely to be. It is based on knowledge of tectonics and geology, information about the history of earthquakes, and wave propagation models.
In Switzerland, the canton of Valais is the region with the highest hazard, followed by Basel, Grisons, the St. Gallen Rhine Valley, Central Switzerland and then the rest of the country.
Earthquake-resistant residential and commercial buildings in Switzerland are designed to withstand shaking that can be expected to occur around once every 500 years. The lifetime of a building is approximately 50 years. The probability of any residential or commercial building experiencing such an earthquake within this 50-year period is therefore 10%.
