Disaster Safety Blog

Will fire sprinkler code requirement reduce property losses?

What will a new code requiring fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family dwellings and townhomes mean for insurers, builders and consumers? New videos and a white paper explore the issue.

The requirement has been part of the National Fire Protection Associations's Life Safety Code, Fire Code and Building Code since the 2006 edition. But it appears for the first time in the 2009 International Residential Code, which was adopted by the International Code Council(ICC).

The ICC promulgates the most widely adopted suite of model building codes in the United States. Although the ICC develops model codes using a consensus-based process, states and local jurisdictions are not required to adopt these model codes. Most states or local jurisdictions do adopt the model codes, however, because it helps standardize building and fire safety regulations over large geographic areas.

Many states will take up the issue of whether to adopt the sprinkler code provision in 2010, but the issue is already getting plenty of attention. The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) examines the fire sprinkler issue in a new white paper.

Among the issues surrounding the topic is how sprinklers might benefit new construction built using engineered lumber and other lightweight products. When lightweight construction meets fire, it sometimes doesn't hold up, according to testing by Underwriters Laboratories (UL). The UL research, along with other testing, is included in the IBHS white paper. It's also being explored by CNN's Gerri Willis, who got a dramatic demonstration that is featured in the video Housing Boom's Hidden Dangers.

Meanwhile, sprinkler proponents are also taking to their story to other news outlets. The Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition has been working with the CBS Early Show on a segment that airs tomorrow, Dec. 23, sometime between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. EST. 

This will be a live segment in a home in LaGrange Park, Ill., with fire sprinklers protecting the living room. The segment also features video taken two weeks ago during a house fire without sprinklers in Brentwood, Tenn.This video will be shown first, then CBS will go live to demonstrate how sprinklers would have made a difference, says Timothy P. Travers, who is the New England Regional Manager for the National Fire Sprinkler Association.

Don't let an earthquake turn your life upside down

A new art exhibit delves into the personal losses associated with the aftermath of an earthquake, MinnPost.com reports today.

The exhibition Quake/Temblor: A Forensics of Interior Life and Natural Disaster by Susannah Bielak is on display through Jan. 16 at Bethel University's Johnson Gallery in St. Paul, Minn. The multimedia installation includes video, drawings, prints, photography and engravings. View a photo gallery. 

Here is what MinnPost.com says about the exhibit:

"Quake/Temblor" is a perceptive but unsentimental reminder of just how closely our individual fates are tied with that of the natural world around us. It's well worth a visit to the gallery to see this show for yourself."

"The project," Bielak writes in her artist statement, "joins spaces of scientific testing, public memory, and private history — making reference to the Richter Scale, the broken city, and the kitchen table. Quake/Temblor aims to make visible some of what lies between everyday family life and the experience of an earthquake."

The installation is a composite creation, an archive of sorts recording both the geographic and human toll of large-scale natural disaster — using photographic and historical records of the 1985 quake, performative re-enactments (on video) of the event itself, and ingenious engraved pieces and prints, for which she's carved scenes of destruction on ordinary Formica kitchen tabletops.

Bielak describes going through old family photos one day and finding among them slides of the horrific aftermath of Mexico City's massive 1985 earthquake, all taken by her father. A civil engineer whose family roots lay in Mexico City, Bielak's father returned to his native home to document the quake's effects. She remarks that when she stumbled upon her father's photos, the juxtaposition of her family's intimate snapshots with images of such large-scale destruction was "destabilizing, pushing me to question the issue of terra firma in daily life."

It is possible to minimize the damage caused by earthquakes. Learn how with help from the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).

Nebraska rattled by rare earthquake

Southeastern Nebraska residents were rattled by a minor earthquake Wednesday night, the U.S.Geological Survey (USGS) reports. Earthquakes are uncommon in the state.

The USGS reported the 3.5 magnitude quake struck at 8:53 p.m. and was centered two miles north-northwest of Auburn.The quake was felt by people in several nearby Nebraska towns, including Peru, Nebraska City, Brock, Tecumseh, and across the Missouri River in Hamburg, Iowa.

Though not known for its earthquakes, Nebraska has experienced several notable shakes since its founding as a state in 1867. The USGS says the most serious of them was a magnitude 5.1 quake on Nov. 15, 1877, in the east-central part of the state.

The majority of damage caused by minor earthquakes occurs in a home's interior, where valuable electronics such as wall-mounted flat screen televisions can shift and often come dislodged. Appliances such as water heaters can topple, spilling water onto the floor and damaging surrounding furnishings and other valuables.

Learn how to secure the interior of your home or business with information from the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). Download a free guide today.

Biloxi weighs residential sprinkler requirement adoption

City leaders in Biloxi, Miss., are considering whether to adopt new building codes, which could include a requirement for sprinkler systems to be installed in new one- and two-family homes.

Builders told the City Council on Tuesday that they object to new building codes that would require sprinkler systems in all new homes, according to the Sun-Herald newspaper. The council tabled action on adopting the 2009 International Building Code until a workshop is scheduled, probably after the first of the year.

Community Development Director Jerry Creel said the city was notified early in November that it must adopt the newest building codes or the city’s insurance rating could drop from a 4 to a 9 and residents would face increased insurance costs.

There is some confusion about whether an amendment to exclude the sprinkler requirement would effect the city's 4 rating, and whether the rating is based on wind-resistant construction guidelines more than fire suppression capabilities, the newspaper reports. Some of the other requirements under the new code for new homes are carbon monoxide sensors and ground fault interrupter plugs throughout a home.

In September 2008, after many years of consideration and debate, the International Code Council (ICC), which promulgates the most widely adopted suite of model building codes in the United States, also approved code change proposals for the 2009 International Residential Code (IRC) to require fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family dwellings and townhomes.

In 2007, 414,000 residential fires resulted in 2,895 deaths and 14,000 injuries, and caused $7.5 billion in property damage, according to the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). When asserting its support for the requirement that automatic fire sprinklers be installed in all new residential construction, USFA cited its studies indicating the potential to save thousands of lives, prevent many injuries, and eliminate hundreds of millions of dollars in property losses. The USFA estimates that 90 percent of house fires are contained by the operation of a single sprinkler.

The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) has long included fire sprinkler systems as a recommended part of its code-plus Fortified . . . for safer living® program. In November 2007, the IBHS Building Code Committee, which is comprised of representatives from a number of IBHS member insurance companies, unanimously endorsed the idea of pushing for the inclusion of fire sprinkler requirements in the residential building codes.

In 1986, the city of Scottsdale, Arizona, enacted a code requirement for installation of sprinkler systems in all new single-family houses. The city now has more than 45,000 single-family homes equipped with fire sprinklers. Ten years later, in 1997, a study was conducted by the City of Scottsdale and its Rural/Metro Fire Department in cooperation with the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition. A brief update also was issued in 2001.

Read more about Scottdale's experience in a presentation from Michael Clack, Scottdale's director of development services. Clack shared his experiences and presented several papers on the topic at the IBHS conference earlier this month.

Rising waters threaten properties in greater New Orleans

Record-setting rainfall in the greater New Orleans area flooded streets and forced some residents into emergency shelters on Tuesday.

Rain gauges at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport reported 22.26 inches of rain by mid-day Tuesday, according to Louisiana climatologist Barry Keim at Lousiana State University. He said that's the heaviest monthly rainfall recorded at the airport, where records have been kept since 1946. And it was within striking distance of the monthly record for the New Orleans metropolitan area, 25.11 inches, set in October 1937.

More rain is in the forescast for Thursday, bringing more water to already saturated ground. In Lafourche Parish, southwest of New Orleans, there were isolated reports of homes flooding in Raceland, Bayou Blue and north Thibodaux, according to local government reports. Parish officials opened an emergency shelter at the Raceland Recreation Center for anyone needing to evacuate.

In St. Charles Parish, where public schools were closed Tuesday because of standing water on roads, a section of a small levee in the town of Boutte was overtopped, according to USA Today.

Keeping rising waters and wind-driven rain out of you home or business is the first step toward preventing widespread property damage to the drywall, floors and valuables stored at floor level, according to the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). Learn more about minimizing flood damage with help from IBHS engineers.

Natural disasters are responsible for 90 percent of economic losses worldwide

The annual number of weather-related disasters has increased about seven-fold since the 1970s and these types of incidents are now responsible for 90 percent of economic-related losses worldwide, according to a new report released by the the Center for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), a branch of the United Nation's World Health Organization (WHO).

Although natural disasters claimed the smallest annual toll in human life and economic loss in a decade in 2009, the causes of these disasters continued to be overwhelmingly climate related, the U.N. reported Monday. Therefore, the public should be warned against a false sense of security from the temporary decline.

"If you pull back and look at the trends over a much longer period, starting in the 1970s, you will see a very serious increase in the total number of natural disasters - about seven-fold," said CRED director Debarati Guha Sapir in a news release. "The portion of those that are weather-related is steadily increasing and is now consistently above 90 percent."

Some 58 million people have been affected by 245 natural calamities so far this year, more than 90 percent of them weather events amplified by climate change, according to the preliminary figures.

Just over 8,900 people have been killed by disasters of all kinds, with 80 percent of those deaths climate-related, according to the CRED report.

"Statistics this year show lower figures compared to previous years, which is good news for people and countries," said Margareta Wahlstrom, UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction told journalists in Copenhagen, where UN climate talks are under way. "However, extreme weather disasters remain at the top of the list and will continue to affect more people in the future as more than half of the world's population highly exposed is living in coastal regions."

Prepare your property for a natural disaster with help from the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). Thinking of "going green" to reduce your contribution to the changing climate? Learn why it's important for a building to be as durable as it is green.

New climate report has dire warnings for coastal areas

A new report released during the first week of climate meetings (Dec. 7-18) in Copenhagen, Denmark, predicts a significant rise in sea levels by 2100 and calls for action by 2012 in order to have any effect on the changing climate.

The report, which was composed by a group of 26 climatologists, is a summary of hundreds of peer-reviewed research papers published in the last several years. The Copenhagen Diagnosis supersedes a 2007 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that has been the standard for reference on climate statistics since its publication. Fourteen of the climatologists who compiled the Copenhagen Diagnosis were also authors of the 2007 IPCC report.

If we apply the predictions coming from the report to the topography of the Gulf Coast then 10 percent of Florida and Louisiana will be under water by 2100, says Sally Kneidel, Ph.D., who is the author of eleven books on nature, conservation and science topics. 

 
  The new evidence in the report includes:

• Satellite and direct measurements now demonstrate that both the Greenland and Antarctic ice-sheets are losing mass and contributing to sea level rise at an increasing rate.
• Arctic sea-ice has melted far beyond the expectations of climate models. For example, the area of summer sea-ice melt during 2007-2009 was about 40 percent greater than the average projection from the 2007 IPCC Fourth Assessment Report.
• Sea level has risen more than 5 centimeters over the past 15 years, about 80 percent higher than IPCC projections from 2001. Accounting for ice-sheets and glaciers, global sea-level rise may exceed 1 meter by 2100, with a rise of up to 2 meters considered an upper limit by this time. This is much higher than previously projected by the IPCC. Furthermore, beyond 2100, sea level rise of several meters must be expected over the next few centuries.
• In 2008 carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels were ~40 percent higher than those in 1990. Even if emissions do not grow beyond today’s levels, within just 20 years the world will have used up the allowable emissions to have a reasonable chance of limiting warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius.

The report concludes that global emissions must peak then decline rapidly within the next five to ten years for the world to have a reasonable chance of avoiding the very worst impacts of climate change.

To stabilize climate, global emissions of carbon dioxide and other long-lived greenhouse gases need to reach near-zero well within this century, the report states.

According to the Copenhagen climatologists, by the end of this century global sea levels will rise at least twice as much as earlier predicted by the IPCC. If heat-trapping emissions are not reduced, the rise will be 1 to 2 meters by the year 2010. And they will keep on rising for centuries, for a total of several meters - even if global temperatures have been stabilized.

How might this affect Florida?

What will happen in Florida when sea levels rise?  Frank Ackerman, a senior economist at the Stockholm Institute, has studied that question with computer modeling. His model projects a 27-inch rise by the year 2060, just 50 years from now.

About Florida, Ackerman says, "Our map of the area vulnerable to 27 inches of sea-level rise looks like someone took a razor to the state right above Miami and sliced off everything below that, [which includes] residential real estate worth $130 billion in that, half of Florida's beaches, two nuclear reactors, three prisons, 37 nursing homes, and on and on."

The porous limestone on which much of South Florida is built makes the area unsuitable for levees, like those built in New Orleans and the Netherlands. It will be up to individuals to protect their properties. Research by the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) has found the only ways to truly protect coastal properties from storm surge are proper elevation - 2 percent above the annual probability of exceedance levels - and by choosing the right interior finishes - wood over drywall - to minimize interior damage when water does get inside a structure. Learn more about IBHS property protection guidelines.

Dr. Hal Wanless, chairman of Geological Sciences at the University of Miami, says that rising sea levels come right up through the limestone, as was proved during Hurricane Betsy. "There's no way to put a levee around South Florida and really keep the water out."

Galveston's delayed recovery should be a lesson for other vulnerable areas

More than a year after Hurricane Ike tore through Galveston, Texas, and the surrounding areas, recovery continues and city officials are struggling to find ways to pay to rebuild, according to The Galveston Daily News and WKHOU-TV.

Although Galveston stands to get the biggest share of $844 million in a second round of federal disaster aid, city officials said it’s not enough to repair all the houses, roads, sewers, water pipes and other infrastructure damaged when Hurricane Ike struck the island Sept. 13, 2008, the news sources report. Here is an excerpt from today's story: 

"We want our people back," City Manager Steve LeBlanc told the Houston-Galveston Area Council at a public hearing Wednesday. "We need housing to do that. We need infrastructure to do that."

Galveston still is reeling from latent effects of the hurricane, including the loss of up to 20 percent of the population and a dip in property values that forced the city to raise taxes "just to make ends meet," LeBlanc said. The city also is facing mounting problems with flood-damaged streets, sewers and water pipes, outgoing Deputy City Manager Brandon Wade said.

Since the storm, the city has held together its infrastructure with pumps, generators and "zip ties," Wade said.

The regional organization charged with distributing the disaster recovery money to 12 area counties hit hard by Ike has tentatively recommended allocating $729.5 million, or 86 percent, of $844 million to area cities and counties to administer.

More than $100 million of the $844 million would go to the state for an affordable housing program in the area, and $9.9 million will go to the state to repair area medical facilities. Of the $729.5 million allocated to area cities and counties, $189.8 million, 26 percent, would go to Galveston, and $178.6 million, 25 percent, would go to Galveston County.

The Houston-Galveston Area Council will vote on the allocations Monday. The organization recommended in February allocating similar percentages to the city and county from a first round of disaster recovery money. That money is not expected to trickle down to city and county homeowners until March, at the earliest.

Galveston city officials told the area council Wednesday that rounds one and two funding combined would pay for only 20 percent of the cost to repair damaged city infrastructure and the more than 17,000 Galveston houses flooded during Ike.

Two-thirds of homeowners were uninsured, Sterling Patrick, the city’s director of grants and housing, said.

What happened in Galveston and the problems that continue to plague that community are examples of why a community-wide approach to property protection against hurricanes - and other natural disasters - is the best way to prepare, according to the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). Learn more about how to rebuild your community stronger or how to begin working with your neighbors now - before the worst happens - to create a more resilient community.

Partnership on Mitigation Summit focuses on developing strategies

 
The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) was among the organizations participating in today's Partnership on Mitigation Summit held at the Travelers Institute in Connecticut.

The summit was part of a recently launched initiative to promote and raise awareness of catastrophe readiness, according to a Travelers news release. A panel of experts, including IBHS President & CEO Julie Rochman, gathered at the summit to discuss strategies for making homes more resilient. 

“I am pleased to join with The Travelers Institute in helping to get the word out about the importance of fortifying homes to be more resilient to natural disasters,” said Julie Rochman, President and CEO, Institute for Business & Home Safety.  “When homes are built or retrofitted to make them more durable, we are protecting property, saving lives and helping to reduce costs to consumers and insurers.” 

At the summit, The Travelers Companies, Inc. announced a pilot program to write insurance policies in certain states along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts for homes meeting established standards designed to resist the impacts of tropical storm and hurricane winds, according to the news release. Qualifying homes will be eligible for a 35 percent hurricane premium credit. 

The IBHS Fortified … for safer living® program is one example of a designation that would qualify a home for Travelers’ new 35 percent hurricane premium credit.  

“Homes built to meet these stringent standards are better able to withstand severe weather, reducing property losses and saving lives, and we want to promote and raise awareness of these smarter building practices,” said Eric Nelson, Travelers Vice President, Personal Insurance, and a member of the IBHS Board of Directors. “Building stronger homes is a key principle of the Travelers Coastal Hurricane Wind Zone Plan, our proposal to improve the availability and affordability of catastrophic wind coverage in communities along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts.  We hope this initiative and meaningful premium credit will encourage homeowners, builders and building officials to adopt these disaster resistant standards.”

Nelson served as moderator for The Institute’s Partnership on Mitigation Summit held at Travelers Claim University in Windsor, Conn. 

Other panelists in addition to Ms. Rochman included:
• Dail Rowe, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Regional Manager – WeatherPredict Consulting, Inc.;
• Manuel Lonfat, Ph.D., Managing Director – Travelers;
• Jay Guin, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Modeling and Research – AIR Worldwide;
• Ann Roberson, Manager – SC Safe Home Program, South Carolina Department of Insurance.

 “Potential changes in hurricane activity and a significant growth in property development have left U.S. coastlines vulnerable to catastrophic risks. As a result, consumers, builders and regulators are asking how to mitigate risk,” said Joan Woodward, Travelers Executive Vice President of Public Policy and head of The Travelers Institute, in the news release.  “Loss experience data shows dramatic benefits of mitigation strategies that can effectively reduce potential future hurricane losses.  Today’s summit brought together a range of experts to begin collaborating on mitigation strategies that can provide significant value to society by creating more resilient communities.”

Learn more about IBHS' strategies for reducing property damage to homes and businesses at www.DisasterSafety.org - where you can enter your ZIP code and get a free listing of regional natural hazards and affordable projects for reducing the risk of related damage.

Building a history of strength and charm

As housing markets in cities across the country continue to struggle toward recovery, the unique concentration of historic homes in New Orleans is proving to be an economic boon, according to New Orleans City Business.

For every $1 million spent on restoring a historic building in Louisiana, 28 jobs are created — 10 more jobs than when the same amount is spent on new construction, said Donovan Rypkema, principal consultant for Washington, D.C.-based preservation firm Place Economics.

While preservation efforts have traditionally been a function of aesthetic improvement, Rypkema said economic opportunities loom in every restoration project.

“I think the movement today is not an end in itself, but it is a vehicle for other means,” he said. “There are 500 or 600 different industries listed in the econometric models, almost none of which have more local economic impact than does the restoration of historic buildings.”

New Orleans Millworks Manager Mark Pollock said the historic renovation and restoration business has grown over the last two years in stark contrast to other areas of the nation that rely solely on new construction.

“We really don’t ever have a lack of work,” Pollock said. “These old homes always need constant work and care.”

New Orleans residents know firsthand that damaging effects of hurricane-driven winds and rains. It is possible to build a home that fits into historic architecture, but still possesses the strength to stand up to Mother Nature.

The Institute for Business & Home Safety's Fortified…for safer living® code-plus construction program can work with nearly any type of architecture. In Savannah, Ga.,11 Fortified homes were built in a historic neighborhood by Habitat for Humanity in conjunction with the Georgia Insurance Information Service. Learn more about the Fortified program.