Museum of the City of San Francisco

Home

Index

By Subject

By Year

Biographies

The Gift Shop


San Francisco Department of Public Works
Report on the 1989 Earthquake

by Richard Evans
Director of Public Works



The Miracle of the Earthquake
People, Places and Things
Post-Earthquake Building Inspection Process - Earthquake Planning Efforts
The E.O.C.
The Media
Memories
Training and the Real Thing
Results
The Role of Public Works
The Marina Experience
Demolitions
Disaster Preparedness
Epilogue

INTRODUCTION

The series of events that began at 5:04 p.m. On October 17th, l989 presented an unprecedented demand for services on the men and women of the Department of Public Works. The earthquake, the building crane collapse, and the fiery explosion in a downtown building on New Years Eve provoked varying levels of response, always professional, and always complete. People had to turn out at odd hours and under lots of stress, yet turn out they did. As this is written, we are still dealing with the results of the events cited above, and we are also dealing with the work needed to get the City back to normal. Conditions will never be the same, but the people of the Department of Public Works will always be ...

DEDICATED TO SERVICE.

It is to these people that this journal is dedicated.

May 4, 1990


Return to 1989 Earthquake Exhibit.