STurner
EF2
Over the past several years NWS, scientists and engineers have been paying close attention to construction when determining the F-scale or EF-scale which was implemented on February 1, 2007. I know there have been a lot of discussions on this over the past few years and am wondering how they arrive at rating a tornado. I am no expert but I have seen damage photos of homes which were not attatched to the foundation, just straight nailed to the foundation, and homes that were anchor bolted to the foundation but with no lugs on the bolts. I actually saw a house that was a bare concrete slab but the bushes, trees, and mailbox actually seemed to take minimal or no damage. I also know there are other failures such as roof, wall, and other types etc. but maybe someone else could explain how these must be properly attached to receive a higher EF rating. Another thing I was wondering if its not always construction practices but somehow the house was flattened but some smaller objects nearby survived the direct impact of the tornado. I was wondering if this may be due to multiple vorticies or other unknown reasons. The Kansas City F4 tornado on May 4, 2003 I believe actually wiped a house completely off its foundation but left a table with dishes unscratched that was only about 20 feet away from the house. There have been a few instances where things like this had happened and I thought they may have been deserving of a higher rating. I hope to hear from some people who are more knowledgable than I am about this subject. I am considering on going to school so I will be able to rate tornadoes one of these days and know more about construction practices.
