They need to make building WOOD FRAME buildings illegal ...

[HollynLA]

It seems like no matter where you live, you can be prone to some sort of natural disaster: Hurricanes, tornado alley, earthquakes, blizzards, landslides, avalanches, volcanoes, floods, wildfires, and more. So if you eliminated all those areas, what's left??

[iluvseashore]

I agree with the wood building issue. I have been thinking that for a while and also feel that Moble Homes should never be near the coast to me that's just insane. I lived in one in North Florida and suffered alot of anxiety everytime there were severe thunderstorms in the area with the threat of tornados. I'll never live in one again. I was miserable and felt very vulnerable. Sat up all night in the late 90's one night watching several tornados hit the Orlando area and flattened everything. Really opened my eyes.

[wxwatcher2]

My take is this. If you want to live on a barrier island such as Dauphin Island or Sanibel etc then by all means do it. But make sure your home is built to withstand huricane force winds and up high enough to take the storm surge. Sure it will be expensive so,,,,maybe only the rich can afford it but that's life.
What bugs me about some of the damage I've been seeing is that some of the old wood match box houses where the poor live were demolished.
Those homes were probably very old. I don't think they should be allowed to rebuild those types of homes within "x" distance from the coast.

I'm for more strict building codes but no matter what, people will live where they want to live and ultimately, nature will win out in the end..

[GalvestonDuck]

I'm surprised David hasn't posted yet.

[wolffeeder]

How about this radical idea. Build whatever kind of house wherever you want to, mud and sticks on the beach for all I care, but don't expect me to pay for it when it gets destroyed by hurricane, fire, earthquake, whatever. Like as mentioned in this article concerning hurricanes, federal insurance, and barrier islands:

http://www.tompaine.com/articles/storm_blockers.php

Either buy real capitalist free market insurance like everyone else, or take your chances without crying about it.

I had always wondered how much that federal flood insurance costs. My mom needs to move from inland where she pays many thousands per year for homeowner's insurance (over half her income for taxes and insurances) to the beach I guess.

It also mentions that north Captiva was split off of Captiva in historic times by a hurricane and the year. Wonder if it is North, Middle, and South Captiva now, or do we have a North North Captiva island?

[indiboxer]

The whole state of Florida needs to adopt the South Florida Building Code which was revised after Hurricane Andrew in 1992. It is one of the strictest building codes in the country. There were several proposals to make it mandatory for Florida but it was shot down because the lobbyist for the builders said it would raise the prices of new homes. These prices could have been passed on to the consumer. The prices of homes have gone through the roof without adopting these codes. We also need more code inspectors to enforce the stricter codes. Also people in other parts of Florida felt hurricanes only hit the Keys and South Florida so why should they have to conform to this stricter code. We know this is false. Several years ago while visiting Jacksonville I saw wood frame homes being built less then 2 miles from the ocean. I was told again hurricanes don't hit that area of Florida. This is a pet peeve of mine.

[frankthetank]

I agree with the wolf... individuals should be responsible for what happens to their homes when Cat5's come a callin... And if there not insured--thats not my problem or the governments...there are lots of dumpsters available<--thats a joke-- but really, people need to take more responsiblity and not cry to the government for handouts...

[Terry]

I'd guess this thread is getting too political for this forum, but.........one needs to also factor in the income to county and municipal gov'ts, school districts, etc. from beachfront property taxes and from "tourist taxes" etc. An interesting report that I'm certain some economist has already done.

[Lindaloo]

I want to tell all of you something. My parents have a gulf view home that has made it through many storms down in Pensacola! They do not even know if it survived yet. We have a member here who lost everything she owned down there!! I just find it amazing how some of you can judge people after losing their homes to Mother Natures fury. People in glass houses should not cast stones. Because I ASSURE you that no one is safe from Mother Nature no matter where you live.

It amazes me how some of you have no compassion for anyone or anything!!

[yzerfan]

Yes, they have strengthened the building codes in Florida in recent years, and yes the new codes are working. I've seen a lot of barrier island footage today, and many of the newer homes built under the new codes held up very well. The problem is that the roads in front of them are now not existing.

[Lutrastorm]

"the rest of us" are already paying for previous storms. I live 4 miles from the ocean in Delaware. We've never (since record keeping began for hurricanes) suffered a direct hit by a hurricane, however, after each "major event" season my premiums have gone up substantially with an explainaton from the insurance company that it's been due to hurricane damage in the south. I don't live in a flood plain, but, have been required to carry hurricane coverage since Andrew. As a matter of fact, State Farm and several other major carriers have eliminated coverage in most of our coastal towns, again, even though we have not had a direct (or even close to a direct hit). As of the first of 2005, all new and remodelling construction jobs within 1 mile of the ocean will be required to install hurricane "proof" windows. Believe me, we ALL pay for past storm damage......

[MiaMom]

Say, didn't the wood frame Habitat for Humanity houses withstand Andrew at ground zero in Homestead? I distinctly remember some concrete houses getting trashed right next to these H for H houses. There was no storm surge where they were.

[frankthetank]

LUTRa~

Around here house insurance has skyrocketed in the last few years...They seemed to really jump after the fires out in the southwest...Homes are always going to be at risk--it just seems like a bad idea to build homes in areas that are HIGH risk...That dome home on MSNBC survived, maybe the government should buy everyone on the coast one of them???might be cheaper in the long run...

[KeyLargoDave]

Amid the heated accusations about personal responsibility, environmental kooks, and the costs to everyone when homes are destroyed in hurricanes, there is a real lack of actual truth about insurance here.

Flood insurance is federally subsidized because all of the North American continent is subject to flooding, from the desert to the plains to the mountains to the seashore.

However, flood insurance only covers damage from rising water. It does not cover damage from WIND-DRIVEN WAVES. So a lot of hurricane damage is NOT covered by flood insurance.

WINDSTORM insurance is special insurance for areas where homeowner's insurance EXCLUDES hurricane damage. Thanks, Homeowner's insurance companies, BTW. In Florida, the state has had a separate windstorm underwriting corporation since before Andrew. I've had a Florida Windstorm policy since 1988, when it cost about $250. It's now about $1,500 a year.

Does that amount sound reasonable for insuring my home? It would be, if it did insure the value of my home. It's for about $70,000 coverage. I could never rebuild even my modest home for that amount. AND, the government insurance corporation refuses to increase the value of the policy for anyone like me, whose home has appreciated over a period of years. I also pay for flood insurance that will not cover me in a hurricane. The chance of a rising-water flood in the Florida Keys is nil to none. I also have Homeowner's insurance, also underwritten by the state of Florida.

So, could we get off the idea that everyone who's not living on the beach is paying through the nose for everyone in Florida to do so? And consider how hurtful even mild criticism is to people just finding out that their friends and families have lost their homes, businesses, and normal lives.

So your rates are going up in Deleware, and the agent tells you it's Florida's fault. Well, that must be true. I'm sure the agent is struggling, probably drives an old car, doesn't have a beach house and isn't planning to retire to Florida. We know that our insurance prices are rock-bottom, the companies are barely making a profit, and they're soaking the poor bums who live in safe, unattractive parts of the country because they want to keep their customers in Florida happy.<end sarcasm>

[Lindaloo]

Amid the heated accusations about personal responsibility, environmental kooks, and the costs to everyone when homes are destroyed in hurricanes, there is a real lack of actual truth about insurance here.

Flood insurance is federally subsidized because all of the North American continent is subject to flooding, from the desert to the plains to the mountains to the seashore.

However, flood insurance only covers damage from rising water. It does not cover damage from WIND-DRIVEN WAVES. So a lot of hurricane damage is NOT covered by flood insurance.

WINDSTORM insurance is special insurance for areas where homeowner's insurance EXCLUDES hurricane damage. Thanks, Homeowner's insurance companies, BTW. In Florida, the state has had a separate windstorm underwriting corporation since before Andrew. I've had a Florida Windstorm policy since 1988, when it cost about $250. It's now about $1,500 a year.

Does that amount sound reasonable for insuring my home? It would be, if it did insure the value of my home. It's for about $70,000 coverage. I could never rebuild even my modest home for that amount. AND, the government insurance corporation refuses to increase the value of the policy for anyone like me, whose home has appreciated over a period of years. I also pay for flood insurance that will not cover me in a hurricane. The chance of a rising-water flood in the Florida Keys is nil to none. I also have Homeowner's insurance, also underwritten by the state of Florida.

So, could we get off the idea that everyone who's not living on the beach is paying through the nose for everyone in Florida to do so? And consider how hurtful even mild criticism is to people just finding out that their friends and families have lost their homes, businesses, and normal lives.

So your rates are going up in Deleware, and the agent tells you it's Florida's fault. Well, that must be true. I'm sure the agent is struggling, probably drives an old car, doesn't have a beach house and isn't planning to retire to Florida. We know that our insurance prices are rock-bottom, the companies are barely making a profit, and they're soaking the poor bums who live in safe, unattractive parts of the country because they want to keep their customers in Florida happy.<end sarcasm>

[GalvestonDuck]

Ditto that!

[GalvestonDuck]

And who says concrete is strong?



Edit -- BTW, kill this post if images still aren't allowed, mods.

[HollynLA]

In south LA, after getting a double hit from Isadore and Lilli, my homeowners insurance tripled even though I never made a claim before and I don't live right on the coast. For a home valued at 105K, it went from $460/year to $1300/year and flood insurance is an additional $550 per year even though my home has NEVER flooded since it's existence in 1983. Many companies fled LA after that and I had very few options as far as finding a new company to write a policy. My point is that everyone will pay for these disasters one way or another.

[banshee]

From what I can see on the block house above it doesnt appear to be reinforced with rebar nor concrete poured inside the blocks.

[clueless newbie]

From what I can see on the block house above it doesnt appear to be reinforced with rebar nor concrete poured inside the blocks.

It almost tlooks like wooden frame with concrete bricks walls. No poured concrete, no reinforcements, no surprise that it did not survive.