Tornado Damage Investigation, Greensburg, Kansas, 1699 DR-KS

The report by FEMA

The Tornado Damage Investigation, Greensburg, Kansas, 1699 DR-KS[1] is a report created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in October 2007, which was formally released to the public in December 2024 from a Freedom of Information Act request for the previously uncirculated document.[1] Following the deadly 2007 Greensburg tornado, the first-ever EF5 tornado to occur in the United States, a team from FEMA, coordinated by Jim Donley and Chris Hudson, conducted an investigation regarding the construction quality of several of the building damaged or destroyed by the tornado. Between May 10–11 and on May 21, FEMA conducted on-the-ground site surveys of damaged or destroyed structures in Greensburg, Kansas, including the Delmer Day Elementary School, Kiowa County Memorial Hospital, and the First United Methodist Church.[1]

Case study results

The URS Group under FEMA conducted the structural assessments in Greensburg and subsequently published this case study. From their assessment of 46 different residential buildings and several other buildings, they found that most of the damaged residential buildings were constructed up to modern building-code standards. The case study also discovered that buildings up to the modern building codes, which were newly constructed buildings, were primarily damaged or destroyed after the connection between the roof and walls failed.[2] The FEMA case study also discovered that the modern building codes established for Greensburg would have provided protection to structures for nearly all EF3 or lower-rated tornadoes. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, while discussing the FEMA report, noted that the outer edge of tornadoes will have lower EF-scale ratings. They also stated that "tornado-prone areas, need windborne debris protection because of numerous high speed missiles".[3]

Citations

Despite the report being publicly released for the first time in December 2024, several researchers saw and cited the document prior to its release.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Federal Emergency Management Agency (24 October 2007). "Tornado Damage Investigation, Greensburg, Kansas, 1699 DR-KS" (Report). United States Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  2. ^ Honerkamp, Ryan; Yan, Guirong; Han, Daoru; Feng, Ruoqiang; Li, Zhi; Li, Tiantian (November 2022). "Tornado-Induced Structural Damage Based on Reconnaissance Surveys of the 2019 Jefferson City, Missouri, Tornado and Previous Notable Tornadoes". Natural Hazards Review. 23 (4). ASCE Library. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)NH.1527-6996.0000574.
  3. ^ Baechler, Michael; Gilbridge, Theresa (7 December 2018). "Most High-Wind Guidance is for Hurricanes" (PDF). Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Richland, Washington: United States Department of Energy National Laboratories. p. 20. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  4. ^ Marshall, Timothy P.; McCarthy, Daniel; LaDue, James. "Damage survey of the Greensburg, KS tornado". Haag Engineering Co. & National Weather Service. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  5. ^ Kikitsu, Hitomitsu; Nakade, Koji; Maeda, Junji (2012). "Recent Tornado-induced Structural Damage and Related Countermeasures". Wind Engineers, JAWE. 37 (2): 98–107. doi:10.5359/jawe.37.98.
  6. ^ Edwards, Roger; LaDue, James G.; Ferree, John T.; Scharfenberg, Kevin; Maier, Chris; Coulbourne, William L. (1 May 2013). "Tornado Intensity Estimation: Past, Present, and Future". Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. 94 (5). American Meteorological Society: 641–653. doi:10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00006.1. Retrieved 20 January 2025.