47.5 MB - The Whole Building Design Guide

Designing the connections between structural components accordingto loads is critical to maintaining the load path andthe structural integrity of school buildings in hurricane-proneregions.4.3.7 Building EnvelopeNewer educational facilities located some distance from the coastsustained mainly wind-induced damage to the building envelope,primarily to roof coverings and windows. Facilities located alongthe coastline were hit by the storm surge that destroyed most ofthe building envelope on the ground floor, including large sectionsof exterior walls. The walls collapsed under flood loads thatexceeded all expectations.At Charles P. Murphy Elementary School, many of the infill masonrywalls were displaced, and the concrete slabs on grade wereuplifted and severely cracked in several classrooms (see Figure4-23). A similar slab failure also occurred at D’Iberville MiddleSchool. The cause of this type of failure was an increase in upwardhydrostatic pressure below the slab, causing it to burst upward.Figure 4-23:Cracked concrete floorslab at Charles B. MurphyElementary SchoolOBSERVATIONS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CRITICAL FACILITIES4-35