Tornadoes and Housing

[MaxPC]

We have been looking at the before and after satellite images of the Mississippi communities devastated by the EF4 tornado. In the UK that type of weather is rare. We had gales but nothing like this whirling juggernaut phenomena.

What type of construction techniques do you think are most effective for protection in tornado country?

[Robert]

What type of construction techniques do you think are most effective for protection in tornado country?

None. We build a tornado room in a house that is reinforced but not easy to save the whole house.

[RZehr]

What type of construction techniques do you think are most effective for protection in tornado country?

None. We build a tornado room in a house that is reinforced but not easy to save the whole house.

None are most effective? I think certain types are definitely more effective than others.

[Robert]

When a F4 or F5 hits, not much stands afterwards. Brick stuctures can take a beating, but when they go down, bricks are thrown around. That causes a lot of damage.

Tornadoes hit, but the rarity of it hitting means to cost of massive building to account for the rarity of a tornado hit makes it too expensive. Adding one room that has metal reinforced walls does not have a real high cost and will save the lives since much will have to be rebuilt since a house has windows and doors that will allow massive internal damage also, even if the structure stands.

[Neto]

My grandma had an underground storm shelter when a tornado destroyed the entire farm in 91 (all buildings, trees, machinery). That was the only thing left, and that's where everyone was. This was in western Oklahoma, north of Enid.

My younger brother's wife was not able to go up & down stairs, certainly not quickly, so he had an above the ground storm shelter built, connected to the house. She has since passed away, and there haven't been any tornadoes set down in right his area (smack in the middle of "tornado alley" - Edmond, OK), so the house is all still there.

I grew up in northeastern Oklahoma (16 miles north of Tulsa), and we often had multiple tornadoes pass through the area in a span of a few hours, but none were on the ground when they went past our house. (That house has no cellar or storm shelter. When I was 11 years old, I actually slept right through one that went right over the back yard.) There was a trailer house a few miles away that had (has?) about 6 or 8 inch steel beams over the building in several locations. Bad idea. Would you rather go for a ride where you MIGHT have a SLIM chance of surviving, or get strained to pieces when the wind tore the house out through those restraints?

The only way to be sure your house would survive would be to 1.) build entirely underground, or 2.) build the entire house with poured cement walls and ceiling (You would still loose the roof, but the house itself would survive). (Certain types of topography would help protect a house in many cases, but probably not all. Like being situated between two high hills. But then the tornado areas don't have a lot of hills - that's part of the reason why damages are so severe when one does come through.)

[MaxPC]

Clarification: I had in mind construction techniques that would save people. The rest of the house is unimportant for me.

I have heard of storm rooms in which poured concrete walls were a part of a large closet within the house. This seems to be popular in areas that are too unsuitable for a basement (flooding).

I know that there are those who also install basements with poured concrete walls.

Are there other options for construction? I have never experienced a tornado and have only seen pictures of the destruction.

[Robert]

Tornado rooms are common in OK and a few other states in Tornado Alley. When I helped MDS, we put them in every house we rebuilt. Steel sheets were placed in a interior room with no windows with a steel backed door. As long as the entire house was not picked up, that will stop flying debris which is the big issue. A basement is good, but most homes in OK and Texas do not have basements. Underground storm shelters are the best, but quite expensive.