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When the earth below Seattle began shaking, Clarence Moriwaki wasn’t too concerned — even though the building he occupied was constructed in 1911.


That’s because Moriwaki, media relations specialist at Sound Transit, was in Union Station, which the agency purchased, historically restored and seismically retrofitted to withstand an earthquake registering at least 7.5 on the Richter scale.


"I knew that, so I was confident," he says. "The great hall looks worse than it is."


Gilded ceiling and wall plaster now adorns the floors, and some of the hundreds of skylights are hanging while others are out of position "as if someone shifted a picture inside its frame," says Moriwaki.


But all the damage is cosmetic.


"The exterior of the building is flawless," he says, adding that even the original 90-year-old glass panes and their original frames remained fully intact.


Sound Transit moved into the building in October 1999 after spending $17 million to purchase and restore it.


Union Station is located in the older part of the city where other buildings of the same period suffered major damage — including a nearby nightclub that was crushed — and bricks piled three feet high line the sidewalks.


If the quake had hit 11 hours earlier, those sidewalks would have been filled with Mardi Gras revelers; one hour later, with people enjoying the sunny, warm weather during their lunch breaks.


As it was, most businesses sent people home, clogging open routes out of the city.


"You could have walked to the freeway faster than drive," says Moriwaki.


Sounder commuter rail service shut down for most of the day while Burlington Northern Santa Fe engineers confirmed the system’s 40 track miles and more than 30 bridges and other structures came through unscathed. Given the all-clear, Sounder’s service was restored by the following evening.


And Moriwaki doesn’t believe the quake will interfere with ongoing construction. Sumner Station is scheduled for an opening celebration March 10; on March 12, a temporary enclosure will open in Tukwila.


Meanwhile, light-rail plans continue. Central Link Project Review Committee, which was formed to seek ways to reduce construction cost and shorten the schedule, plans to meet March 7, having cancelled a Feb. 28 meeting due to the quake.


But recent events may alter those discussions.


Most structures are built to withstand a 6.5-magnitude earthquake; Link plans call for 7.5-magnitude strength — 100 times greater, says Moriwaki. While this adds significantly to the cost, the 6.8-magnitude Northwest Earthquake — and Sounder’s lack of serious damage — prove the effort to be a worthy investment.


"We’ve chosen to take that higher standard," says Moriwaki. "We want to be safe."


To discuss seismic retrofitting or constructing passenger rail lines in earthquake zones, please follow this link to Technology discussion forum.


— Kathi Kube