Folks,
I'm certain that there are industry standards for tying the roofing system into the building so the roof holds up to certain wind speeds.  However most composite roofing systems are going to go at less than hurricane speeds.  At the high speeds of a major hurricane or tornado it may not even be the wind speed that is the major factor.  The air pressure differential between the building interior and the vacuum created by the high-speed circular winds will cause the building to explode regardless of  how strong the roof is.  There might even be some virtue in the roof leaving so that the whole building doesn't explode.  The downside of that is water damage from the attendant rain.  I think that is why certain archives and sensitive operations (USPS) have moved into the limestone caves outside of Kansas City.  Dick "Seen Too Many Tornados" King, University of Arizona

________________________________________
From: Records Management Program [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Steward, David [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Monday, February 06, 2012 9:15 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [RM] Offsite Records Storage

I was on the committee that wrote the guidelines.  Interestingly, I have been trying to find any kind of standard regarding wind ratings for offsite records storage facilities.  These are not in the guidelines.  Put simply, could the facility survive tornadic winds?  (Or hurricane if you operate in areas prone to those storms.)  We did not consider this question in our committee.  A definite oversight!

It is difficult to expect any storage facility, other than a cave, to withstand a direct hit from a tornado of F3 or higher without some level of damage.  But the roof should not lack integrity for winds outside of a direct hit.  Not sure what the equivalent would be for a hurricane.  Does anyone know where I can find information on minimum requirements for a roof to withstand pressures such as I described?  I have located the standard requirements, but nothing more descriptive of what should be in place for a records facility.


David B. Steward
Director of Records

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