47.5 MB - The Whole Building Design Guide

air conditioning, without interruption until the generators brokedown from prolonged use and contaminated fuel supplies.Critical operations such as emergency and surgical departments,recovery rooms, ICUs, and other patient bed units and laboratoriesshould not be located in areas below ground or below theelevation of possible flooding and storm surge. These criticalfunctions should be located on upper floors or in areas wherecommunication between floors is easily accomplished. These areasshould have no windows, or should have protected glazing to preventwindow breakage and rain water penetration.4.2.6 Building EnvelopeBuilding envelope damage during Hurricane Katrina was widespreadand included uplifted roof coverings and flashing, roofingpunctured by flying debris or overturned roof-mounted equipmentthat led to extensive rainwater penetration, wall claddingseparation, and window and door breakage.The building envelope on the Garden Park Medical Center inGulfport, a relatively new building opened in 2000, sustained considerabledamage from 130-mph winds during Hurricane Katrina.The estimated wind speed may appear to have been close to thecurrent design wind speed of 135 mph for this facility, but the actualpressures were below the current design pressures as a resultof the 1.15 importance factor required for hospitals. Wall claddingconsisting of EIFS was blown off in several areas, allowingwater to penetrate wall cavities (see Figure 4-6). Extensive use ofEIFS, despite a long track record of failure during hurricanes,contributed to significant damage from water penetration. EIFS isa popular wall cladding system, but not strong enough to preventdamage from wind-borne debris in cases where EIFS is appliedover studs. In addition, EIFS design or construction deficienciesfrequently make it insufficiently resistant to suction pressurescaused by high winds. This is especially significant for hospitals,where such damage can allow water penetration and trigger seriousdisruptions in the mechanical and electrical systems anddamage the building interior. Hospitals in hurricane-prone regionsthat have EIFS should have field testing performed toevaluate its attachment.OBSERVATIONS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CRITICAL FACILITIES4-11