Severe Storm Engineering for Structural Design

In 1989, 1990, and 1991, Hurricanes Hugo, Andrew, and Iniki pummeled the United States wrecking residences, office buildings, military installations, and shopping areas. The devastation had a profound effect on local communities, industries, and commerce. Judging from the destruction these storms caused to buildings in their areas, it is clear that we still have a great deal to learn about designing structures to withstand hurricane-force winds.

This book, for both the student and practicing architect or engineer, explores wind velocity typical of storms such as these. Weather conditions are translated into actual forces on a structure to be used to better design buildings that will resist further hurricanes. Nuclear power plants and other sensitive structures receive special attention. Building codes and standards in other countries are studied in correlation to the number of casualties suffered during a violent storm.

Specifically, Bangladesh is offered as a case study of minimum standards of building construction, while Australia is highlighted for having some of the most stringent regulations in the world.