Tornado in Moore, OK

Angrymesscan

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I'm totally serious, we don't have tornados down here, we do get some hurricanes (I don't know if they are even comparable) and the constructions seem to hold up against the high windspeeds.

I would have thought that a bricks/concrete construction would fare much better vs tornados than wood/plywood/etc.

But as I have stated I know next to nothing about tornados (what is a FE3? I'm guessing "strength of" measure) and little more than that about construction. This is solely based on wind will blow away a sheet of wood much sooner/faster than a brickwall observation physics.
 

Cotton

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I'm totally serious, we don't have tornados down here, we do get some hurricanes (I don't know if they are even comparable) and the constructions seem to hold up against the high windspeeds.

I would have thought that a bricks/concrete construction would fare much better vs tornados than wood/plywood/etc.

But as I have stated I know next to nothing about tornados (what is a FE3? I'm guessing "strength of" measure) and little more than that about construction. This is solely based on wind will blow away a sheet of wood much sooner/faster than a brickwall observation physics.
All of those houses that you see in the images on TV were all made out of brick. Not much stops a tornado. There was even an F5 a few years ago that ripped up an asphalt road.
 

Angrymesscan

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Wow, just looked it up and Tornado speeds are basically double that of a hurricane...
 

Cotton

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Wow, just looked it up and Tornado speeds are basically double that of a hurricane...
Yeah an F4 like this one can get up to 200 mph winds.
 

skidadl

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I'm totally serious, we don't have tornados down here, we do get some hurricanes (I don't know if they are even comparable) and the constructions seem to hold up against the high windspeeds.

I would have thought that a bricks/concrete construction would fare much better vs tornados than wood/plywood/etc.

But as I have stated I know next to nothing about tornados (what is a FE3? I'm guessing "strength of" measure) and little more than that about construction. This is solely based on wind will blow away a sheet of wood much sooner/faster than a brickwall observation physics.
Actually, I had it wrong...the tornado force scale is EF___. Once a tornado reaches EF3 strength it begins to tear bricks off. The one that hit yesterday was one notch above that - it was an EF4. Bricks will not come close to stopping that force.

One other note, a brick home does not provide structure integrity to a home. The structure is still made out of wood framing and then a facade of brick is placed over that. Once a few bricks are torn off the rest comes down like a house of cards.
 

Angrymesscan

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Actually, I had it wrong...the tornado force scale is EF___. Once a tornado reaches EF3 strength it begins to tear bricks off. The one that hit yesterday was one notch above that - it was an EF4. Bricks will not come close to stopping that force.

One other note, a brick home does not provide structure integrity to a home. The structure is still made out of wood framing and then a facade of brick is placed over that. Once a few bricks are torn off the rest comes down like a house of cards.

As I said I don't know much about construction, but I think most homes here are built differently then. The "beams" are made out of concrete and metal rods. I see close to no wood used.
 

skidadl

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I see. Is that new construction that you see this with?
 

Angrymesscan

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Define new.
I know for a fact my parents home was built like this in 1980, their weekend home in 87, my sisters in 87 and my brothers in 98.
And most of the construction I see now too.
 

L.T. Fan

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I really don't understand why people in such high risk areas don't build their houses with mortar and bricks, do you not read the three little piggies story as kids? Or would those be destroyed the same? It's must be horrible to have your house completely disappear in an instant, not to mention the loss of lifes...
Virtually every home in Moore is built with mirror and brick.
 

L.T. Fan

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The wood sheeting in these homes are the decking for the roofs.
 

skidadl

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Define new.
I know for a fact my parents home was built like this in 1980, their weekend home in 87, my sisters in 87 and my brothers in 98.
And most of the construction I see now too.
I'd say in the last 15-20 max. I was just curious about how the homes were constructed. I didn't really understand what you meant in your description.
 

Cotton

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They have upped it and are now classifying it an EF5.
 

Carp

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Glad no one I know lost family, friends, or their property to this...can't imagine what some are going through.
 

skidadl

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No joke. That is some serious stuff going on up there.
 
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