A GIS application has been designed to help the Chennai Corporation and the departments concerned to take quick decisions when a major earthquake strikes the city. The application has been prepared based on data collected as part of the seismic vulnerability screening of over 50,000 buildings with more than three floors by the civic body in association with the Centre for Disaster Mitigation and Management, Anna University. However, buildings in the defence areas were not covered in the seismic vulnerability screening. The civic body has started taking measures towards providing the GIS application to other agencies such as Fire and Rescue Services, Police and Home Guards. The GIS application could be used to find out if any of the residential or commercial buildings with three of more storeys are safe when an earthquake strikes. The number of buildings that are likely to be damaged with a particular magnitude of earthquake in the city could be estima