Is the Transamerica Pyramid built to resist earthquakes?
Yes. The truss system at the base supports both vertical and horizontal loading. The building is carefully engineered to take large horizontal base shear forces. The overhead X-bracing resists torsional movement of the building about its vertical axis. In the 89 earthquake, the top story swayed over 12 inches from side to side, but the building was undamaged and no one was seriously injured. And the above poster is incorrect about “every building since 1906” being built to be earthquake proof.
