Hurricane Michael wreaked havoc on the Panhandle Florida community of Mexico Beach. But one beachfront house has drawn national attention for bearing the brunt of the storm with almost no ill effects.
"The house was fashioned from poured concrete, reinforced by steel cables and rebar, with additional concrete bolstering the corners of the house," The New York Times reported (see: "Among the Ruins of Mexico Beach Stands One House, Built ‘for the Big One’," by Patricia Mazzei). "The space under the roof was minimized so that wind could not sneak in underneath and lift it off. The home’s elevation, on high pilings, was meant to keep it above the surge of seawater that usually accompanies powerful hurricanes."
According to the Times report, Panhandle architect Charles A. Gaskin referred to a 250-mph design wind speed in designing the concrete structure for the owners, attorney Russell King and physician Lebron Lackey.
Hundreds of nearby structures were substantially damaged or totally destroyed, as aerial photos of the Mexico Beach shorefront make clear. But many of those homes were older structures that date back to long before Florida's codes were upgraded in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Many were not elevated, and thus were completely unready for Michael's storm surge; and few apparently had the upgraded wind-resistant framing details required by modern code for new homes in that location.
And other survivors in Michael's path also have stories to tell. The Washington Post reports on five Habitat for Humanity houses that stood up to the storm with flying colors (see: "Houses intact after Hurricane Michael were often saved by low-cost reinforcements," by Patricia Sullivan , Frances Stead Sellers and Emily Wax-Thibodeaux). "The houses still standing in the storm-ravaged neighborhoods of Florida’s Panhandle are conspicuous for their presence," the Post reported. "In many cases, they were saved by additional strategically placed nails, some small metal connectors and window shutters that created a sealed package — low-cost reinforcements that determined whose home survived and whose was destroyed by the power of Hurricane Michael."
Concrete construction is one way to stand up to a hurricane, for sure. JLC's Coastal Contractor looked at the concrete solution in a 2008 feature story (see: "Concrete Houses for the Coast," by Ted Cushman, Coastal Contractor 9/08).
But wood framing can also handle severe hurricanes, given the appropriate detailing. Simply strengthening the roof-to-wall connections during a routine roof replacement is one recommended step that can make all the difference (see: "Strengthening Roof-to-Wall Connections," by Richard Reynolds, Coastal Contractor 11/08).
That roof connection, however, is just one link in the chain of connections that should be analyzed when a house is likely to face extreme wind forces. For a look at appropriate design and construction of the complete "uplift load path," see: "Solving the Uplift Puzzle," by Ted Cushman, Coastal Contractor 7/07).
