Strong South Florida Building Standards Could Cut Storm Damage By Billions

[Guest guest]

http://www.disastersafety.org/newsroom/view.asp?id=198

Sunday, August 25, 2002

Press Release

SOURCE: Institute for Business & Home Safety

Strong South Florida Building Standards Could Cut Storm Damage By Billions

TAMPA - If all buildings in South Florida met the strong code requirements

for Miami-Dade and Broward counties, a repeat of Hurricane , which

struck ten years ago this weekend, would cause about $8.1 billion less

damage to homes and $2.3 billion less damage to businesses, according to a

study commissioned by the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).

The South Florida Building Code Revision, enacted in 1994, mandates

buildings in Miami-Dade and Broward counties be designed to withstand both

strong wind pressures and the impact of wind-borne debris.

According to the study, if another storm with 's strength took the

same track across south Florida today, and building standards were the same

as in 1992, it would cause about $16.8 billion in residential losses and

$5.6 billion in commercial losses.

However, if all south Florida homes and businesses were retrofitted or built

to meet the stronger code, residential losses from such a storm would drop

as much as 50 percent and commercial losses would drop as much as 40

percent, the study found.

" Hurricane helped accelerate a movement toward stronger, well-

enforced building codes in Florida and other states threatened by similar

storms, " said IBHS Building Codes Manager Nanette McElman. " This study

offers compelling evidence of the potential these codes have to

significantly reduce the damage these events can cause. "

Hurricane caused more than $15 billion in insured losses and is the

costliest natural catastrophe in U.S. history. The new Florida Building

Code, which took effect in March of this year, is one of the most

progressive in the nation. It creates a High Velocity Hurricane Zone to

continue use of the South Florida Building Code 94 Revision in Miami-Dade

and Broward counties, and implements similar requirements statewide.

Under the new code, new buildings in high-wind zones outside of Miami-Dade

and Broward counties must either be designed to withstand high internal air

pressures or designed to protect windows and doors from flying debris,

including through the use of shutters or impact-resistant glass.

Hurricane-force winds that enter a building through window or door openings

can cause internal air pressure to soar, blowing the building apart. Though

designing to withstand high internal pressure can keep the structure intact,

it does nothing to keep out high winds and driving rain, which can damage

the building's interior and contents.

For more information on protecting new and existing homes and businesses

from hurricanes or other natural disasters, call IBHS toll free at (866)

657-4247, or visit the IBHS web site, www.disastersafety.org .

IBHS is a national non-profit initiative of the insurance industry to reduce

deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering

caused by natural disasters.