One year ago today, on Aug. 9, 2020, a magnitude 5.1 earthquake centered in Sparta shook parts of western North Carolina, damaging more than 533 homes and businesses.
In the year since, a large recovery effort has been underway. State individual assistance grants totaling $112,054 have been distributed to local residents. Residents have received disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration totaling $1.17 million and the state legislature has provided $24 million for earthquake recovery.
"After the earthquake in Sparta, we told this community that the state would be there to help them recover even stronger than before and I appreciate the work of legislators, state and local leaders to help them rebuild," said Governor Roy Cooper.
While the earthquake in northwestern counties was severe, the event did not qualify for federal disaster assistance from FEMA, so the state legislature’s $24 million in recovery funding was critical to the region’s recovery.
The Earthquake Recovery Program has been operated by the Office of State Budget and Management – Disaster Recovery (OSBM-DR) and North Carolina Emergency Management.
Sparta Mayor Wes Brinegar said the OSBM-DR staff has been “instrumental in overseeing the construction and repair of our beloved town. The entire staff has committed themselves and all their resources to the successful rebuild of our community.”
Sixty-seven percent of the program’s funds have been expended or are under contract for repairs. More than $16.1 million has been approved in awarded contracts for repairs, with $4.6 million of that expended. The three-year program is on track to complete most repair work by the two-year mark.
Recovery applications were received from residents in Alleghany, Ashe, Surry and Wilkes counties. Repairs to 68 homes are complete and 41 home repair projects are currently underway, with an average repair cost of $44,271 per home. A total of $2.88 million has been expended on residential housing recovery.
Other significant work on public facilities and infrastructure includes:
- Repairs and renovations to the Alleghany County Courthouse totaling $600,013 are nearly complete
- Repairs to the Town of Sparta sewer system totaling $3.4 million are currently underway
- Alleghany County Schools was awarded a $600,000 state grant for repairs to county schools
- Surry County Parks Department was awarded $100,000 to repair damaged park facilities.
- Repairs to Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post #7034 in Sparta totaling $171,400 are complete
The 5.1 magnitude quake was a shallow earthquake causing extensive shaking and damage to chimneys and load bearing walls in many homes. It left a crack nearly 2-miles long in the earth’s surface. In the year since the quake, there have been dozens of smaller earthquakes felt in the area around Sparta, most in the range from 1 to 3 on the earthquake magnitude scale.
Help is still available to impacted homeowners who need assistance from the state earthquake recovery program. Residents can learn more and contact the program office using the following information.
Website: Earthquake.nc.gov
Phone: 844-935-1744
Email: earthquake@nc.gov
NC Earthquake Recovery Office
Blue Ridge Business Development Center
115 Atwood St.
Sparta, NC 28675