EIGHT- PENNY NEWS VOLUME 11 • NUMBER 2 NOVEMBER 1992 If ever the skies dealt the construction industry a mixed blessing, Hurricane Andrew was it. Replacing and repairing the buildings destroyed by this most expensive of U.S. natural disasters is expected to revitalize Florida's anemic construction economy. Critics, however, say the storm has graphically exposed the building industry's shortcomings. Poor, substandard construction was responsible for most of the $20 billion in damages caused by Hurricane Andrew, according to engineers and inspectors from the Wind Engineering Research Council (WERC), who inspected both failed and sound buildings in the hurricane's aftermath. Both WERC and other engineers concluded that homes built to code generally withstood the hurricane's 120 mph winds. One engineer reportedly said that the code-complying houses probably could have resisted winds of up to 200 mph. This
