47.5 MB - The Whole Building Design Guide

Figure 4-35:Hancock County EOCSite characteristics and landscaping contributed significantly to theextent and type of damage sustained by these facilities. The GulfportFire Station #5 in Gulfport, Mississippi, experienced significant disruptionbecause of downed trees. One tree fell on the roof, causingminor damage, while two vehicles parked outside were severely damagedby the fallen trees. Furthermore, it took approximately 12hours of cutting the trees before firefighters were able to openthe access road and start responding to emergency calls. This experiencealso underscores the need to provide multiple routes intoand away from a site, in order to have redundancy and minimize thepossibility of isolation as a result of roadway blockage.The experience during Hurricane Katrina proved the efficacy ofpreventive evacuation of equipment and personnel to a safe andsecure location. It also proved wise to organize back-up facilities inother locations or in adjacent jurisdictions to serve as alternativecommand and operation centers. Emergency response facilitiesthat did so were better equipped to respond to citizens’ needs immediatelyafter the storm.4.4.5 Architectural DesignMany buildings used as emergency response facilities were notinitially designed for that purpose, or for operations under emergencyconditions. During and after Hurricane Katrina, most ofOBSERVATIONS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CRITICAL FACILITIES4-51