Deathtrap: Moore tornado debris reveals construction flaws, code violations

[Pulp]

My son worked for the Williamson County Health Department when the F-5 took out Jarrel, TX. He had to go there and mark septic tank locations so heavy equipment wouldn't fall through during cleanup. He found several house locations that even the slab was gone. Not just the house, but the ENTIRE SLAB. I agree that an above ground safe room will protect you from pert near anything, but everything has a failure point.

 

[criticalbass]

My son worked for the Williamson County Health Department when the F-5 took out Jarrel, TX. He had to go there and mark septic tank locations so heavy equipment wouldn't fall through during cleanup. He found several house locations that even the slab was gone. Not just the house, but the ENTIRE SLAB. I agree that an above ground safe room will protect you from pert near anything, but everything has a failure point.

I have never heard what the winds were at Jarrel, but it took slabs and even some concrete streets. I suspect it may have been higher than the 318 measured in the May 3, 99 storm.

 

[rhodesbe]

A safe room cost something like nine times more per sq foot to build than normal finished house avg. ($80 vs $720)

Also claiming construction was bad on Plaza Elementary after an EF-5 wrecked it is like complaining that 1985 Ford Escorts aren't IED proof.

 

[Hobbes]

Some of you guys need to follow the link and continue reading at the journal record.

At least one, and possibly both, of those schools never met even the code of the time.

You might also learn more about why the OK county jail was such a fiasco from the gitgo.

 

[LightningCrash]

 

[Lakenut]

At least one, and possibly both, of those schools never met even the code of the time.
You might also learn more about why the OK county jail was such a fiasco from the gitgo.

Let me guess, can you say lowest bidder?

Not saying the building could have with stood no matter how strong it was built....

Kind of off topic a bit, but...weather predictions have come A LONG ways in the last couple of years. Especially here in OK. Last year on both the Moore tornado and the El Reno tornado everyone was saying that things were coming together to have large, violent, and multiple tornadoes in central Ok. And it wasn't last minute predictions. Days out they were saying this. As the forecast shaped up the day before and the morning of both tornadoes, the weather experts were even more confident/scared of what might happen. The storms came together much as the weather experts feared. As for the schools, why not take a "weather day" off when we have forecasts like this last May? Sure saferooms in every school would be great...and will probably be mandated soon...but in the mean time it might be better than having hundreds of kids huddling in the halls of a building not intended to provide shelter.

 

[LightningCrash]

My son worked for the Williamson County Health Department when the F-5 took out Jarrel, TX. He had to go there and mark septic tank locations so heavy equipment wouldn't fall through during cleanup. He found several house locations that even the slab was gone. Not just the house, but the ENTIRE SLAB. I agree that an above ground safe room will protect you from pert near anything, but everything has a failure point.

See post 902 here:
http://www.talkweather.com/forums/index.php?/topic/58889-significant-tornado-events/page__st__900

 

[Defnestor]

I was there. Following the tornado. It's a wondering that flying rebar didn't take me out.

I'm not saying the rebar wasn't interested, but maybe you're just not its type.

 

[yukonjack]

I'm not saying the rebar wasn't interested, but maybe you're just not its type.

I'm a chick magnet so thank gawd the rebar wasn't interested. I might have had to put a serious bend on it otherwise.

 

[Peace_Maker]

I'll say this both my step daughters walked out of Briarwood without a scratch. Twenty houses down my wife, son, and unborn daughter survived in the bathroom.