Hurricane Safety
Strong building codes protect life
and property
By James Lee Witt
Too often it takes a disaster to demonstrate the importance
of preparedness.
Once again, the residents of Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama and Texas were battered by hurricanes in 2005. This
year's Atlantic hurricane season has been one for the record
books, with three Category 5 storms. The damage to the Gulf
Coast and adjacent regions has been staggering. More than
1,200 deaths have been confirmed this year, and hundreds of
thousands of survivors remain displaced.
On top of the devastating human toll, thousands of commercial
buildings and facilities were damaged or destroyed this year,
leaving many of the displaced not only homeless but also jobless,
and crippling key industries in the region. These resulting
disruptions have affected not only the economies in the hurricane-stricken
states but also the national economy. Hurricane Katrina alone
was responsible for losses of $125 billion. Hurricane Wilma,
the eighth hurricane to strike Florida in 15 months, claimed
at least 21 lives in the state and caused billions, if not
tens of billions, of dollars in damage.
And Wilma came as many Floridians were still recovering
from the 2004 hurricane season, when four storms killed 117
people and caused nearly $20 billion in damage.
As survivors of this year's hurricanes turn their energies
to the critical task of rebuilding, it is important that public
officials and private citizens alike heed the lessons learned
from the catastrophic events of this—and past—hurricane
seasons. One lesson is absolutely clear: Strong building codes
and aggressive code enforcement save lives and reduce property
damage when hurricanes hit. Indeed, building codes are a critical
element of overall hurricane preparedness.
The hurricanes that battered Florida in 2004 provided both
statistical and anecdotal evidence that building codes work.
Florida adopted tougher building codes after Hurricane Andrew
rampaged across South Florida in 1992, causing an estimated
$35 billion in damage. Last year, many of the homes built
since Hurricane Andrew stood virtually unscathed even after
the barrage of Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne.
Already, a preliminary review of the area hit by Hurricane
Katrina concluded that wood-frame houses that survived the
storm's 130-mile-per-hour gusts held up in part because of
attention to standards in the construction process.
The review team—made up of researchers, building code
specialists, engineers and wood industry experts—inspected
more than two dozen affected locations in Mississippi and
Louisiana.
"If the (building) code was followed, things seemed
to do really well,'' said John van de Lindt, a Colorado State
University professor on the team.
The findings bear out what those in the construction and
standards industries already know: stronger building foundations,
"hurricane clips'' to secure the roof to the structure's
frame and storm-grade windows effectively protected both lives
and property.
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush recently suggested that Congress should
establish a national fund to help areas recover from natural
disasters. To be eligible for such funds under Bush's plan,
states would have to strengthen their building codes. While
Congress will debate the merits of Bush's idea, the governor
is right to call for stronger building codes as part of a
natural-disaster preparedness plan.
As communities rebuild and prepare for the 2006 hurricane
season, we should follow the advice of those in the construction
and standards industries and rebuild smarter, stronger and,
most important, to code.
About the Writer
James Lee Witt is a former director of FEMA, and former
CEO of the International Code Council, a membership association
dedicated to the development of building safety and fire prevention
codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings.
|
