'Goodbye mama... it's heading straight for me' sad sad

a reply to: Daedalus

I think it is worth looking into.

When you consider the human cost of failing to adapt building techniques to geographical requirements, it is a wonder that it can all of gone on as normal for so long. You get quake zones where all the sky scrapers fall over, if they remain unmodified. To combat this, building methods changed. Fancy load redistribution systems were implemented. I see tornados and hurricanes in the same way, from the architectural point of view. They represent a challenge no more or less worthy of attention than any other environmental factor affecting building regulation, but are not represented as such by insurers and builders.

Sad story. But you'd think the guy would dive for the bathtub and cover up, or know where else to seek shelter.

As for construction?

Most houses should have a storm room, adjacent shelter, or basement, if built in an area subject to this kind of weather. It's funny seeing somebody who doesn't even live in Tornado Alley saying the obvious. People still buy those houses though.

Also keep in mind that most areas of the midwest that were kept as "farm country" and left rural were not built-up and urbanized for a reason. Even the farm houses were purposely kept apart. (You might have to walk a mile to your neighbor instead of across the road, but if your house got knocked down you could still go to your neighbor's place for help.) Those areas often got flooded or hit by powerful storms. It's just recently that they're being sold out and built over. Now days it's convenience and profit over what used to be pragmatism and common sense.

I think it has to do with insurance (they keep getting it), realtors and what's cosidered "popular", and then architects and builders. You don't have to do much special training or invest in special equipment to pick up some migrants at Home Depot and put up a house in two weeks. It's cheap, and once done it's like 80% of it is profit.

Formed concrete would be a better material for the conditions, but still has a reputation of being ugly/blocky, if people aren't trained right - pours can go bad and crack, you can't rush the work to do it right, usually must be done in-season to set properly, and if architects aren't educated properly and don't understand the nature and properties of the build material - you end up with ventilation/humidity/condensation problems that lead to sick building syndrome with stuff like mold or radon.

Underground or sunken earth berm structures would also be a good idea, but is still considered unusual as well.

Not that it can't be done right, but it takes more effort to change from the status quo. The materials, know-how, and resources for light framed construction is just too easy to get.