Tornado-Induced Wind Loads on a Low-Rise Building

Abstract

Current design wind loads for buildings and other structures are based upon model tests in low-speed boundary-layer wind tunnels that generate straight-line winds. Winds resulting from tornadoes that can occur during extreme weather events such as thunderstorms or hurricanes differ greatly from conventionally conceived atmospheric boundary-layer winds. This paper presents transient wind loads on a one-story, gable-roofed building in a laboratory-simulated tornado and compares them with the provisions of building standards. Tornadoes were simulated in smooth, open terrain with vortex core diameters from roughly five to twelve times the plan dimension of the building model (0.46 to 1.06 m). A 1:100 scale model of a building with dimensions of