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Re: [OM] Clearing Storm

Subject: Re: [OM] Clearing Storm
From: Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 21 May 2013 16:14:05 -0400
My wife commented yesterday that she had heard on one of the news 
reports (probably CNN) that bedrock is not far below the surface in that 
area of Oklahoma.  Building a true storm cellar is a job for dynamite. 
But I suppose many people must have some sort of a safe room.  If not I 
should think fatalities and injuries would have been much higher.  Much 
of that area looks like it is smashed right down to the ground or even 
swept clean.

My house in Florida from 1985-95 was built using what's called the CBS 
(Concrete Block System).  The house sits on a slab but the slab has 
rebars sticking up through the floor and poured concrete pillars.  There 
is a concrete pillar every 8 feet and the pillars are joined at the top 
with a poured concrete lintel.  Concrete blocks are laid for the wall 
between the pillars and floor and lintel.  The top of the lintel has 
steel straps embedded in it when the concrete is still wet.  Those steel 
straps fold over the top edges of the roof trusses to keep the roof in 
place.  So everything from the roof on down is tied to the ground.  My 
roof trusses were only held with a single strap on each end.  That's OK 
if the straps are placed tightly against the truss but that's usually 
not the case and so it's possible for the trusses to shift back and 
forth sideways.  Not good.  So a later fix is to put straps on both 
sides of the truss then fold both over and nail.  Then the truss can't 
move.  The roof tiles were also concrete.

Based on a radar plot taken at 5:30am my house survived about 1/2 hour 
of 120 mph winds from hurricane Andrew with almost no damage.  It met 
the design spec... survive category 3 winds.  All bets are off though at 
cat 4 and higher.

Chuck Norcutt


On 5/21/2013 2:12 PM, Charles Geilfuss wrote:
>    I've thought the same thing Chuck and am surprised, given the long
> history of tornadoes in the area, that more homes don't have basements or
> at the very least a 5"x5"x5" steel-reinforced concrete "bolt hole" that was
> at least partially below grade and have a slide steel door. Those monsters
> are truly frightening. They would only cost a few hundred to build at time
> of construction and to my mind should be part of the building code in
> tornado alley. But you know how that goes.
>
> Charlie
>
>
> On Tue, May 21, 2013 at 1:47 PM, Chuck Norcutt <
> chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> I like both of them.
>>
>> Glad the reported fatalities in Moore, OK have been dramatically
>> reduced.  But I don't know how anyone survives that devastation without
>> a storm cellar.
>>
>> Chuck Norcutt
>>
>>
>> On 5/20/2013 10:51 PM, Ken Norton wrote:
>>> Horrible news this evening in Oklahoma and other parts of the Midwest.
>>> We had our action here in Iowa, but fortunately, nothing like
>>> Oklahoma. This storm was packing some strong winds and golf-ball sized
>>> hail, but slid just to our east.
>>>
>>> With the setting sun, the storm clouds took on a different look. Here
>>> are two photographs:
>>>
>>> Storm Clouds:
>>> http://zone-10.com/tope2/main.php?g2_itemId=5439
>>>
>>>
>>> Storm Clouds and Fence:
>>> http://zone-10.com/tope2/main.php?g2_itemId=5441
>>>
>>> If they look a little ratty, it's because these are just a
>>> quick-n-dirty process of the in-camera jpegs.
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Ken Norton
>>> ken@xxxxxxxxxxx
>>> http://www.zone-10.com
>>>
>> --
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