NORTH CAROLINA STATE LIBRARY 

 RALEIGH 



im. a 



Doc. 



UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA 



MAR 1 1973 



September, 1978 



1235 Burlington Laboratories 

 NCSU, Raleigh, N.C. 27650 Tel: (919) 737-2U5U 



The well-built beach house has: 



— tiedowns connecting roof to walls 

 to foundation; 



— sufficient elevation to be above 

 most storm waters; 



—pilings of sufficient depth to with- 

 stand considerable beach erosion; 



—well-braced pilings; 



—and, no permanent walls enclosing 

 pilings. 



It's no secret that storms on North Carolina's coast 

 take their toll on construction. As development in- 

 creases, so does the loss of property. But it has been 

 over 20 years since the last really severe hurricane 

 struck the coast. "People have forgotten or are not 

 aware of the destructive nature of hurricanes, and 

 the quality of construction has continued to 

 deteriorate," says Dr. Jerry L. Machemehl, of the 

 North Carolina State University School of Engineer- 

 ing. 



"Very few people would be prepared for a major 

 hurricane," says Machemehl. "Most of our structures 

 would not stand a very catastrophic storm based on 

 how they're presently built. We do feel though that 

 by properly anchoring the structures, by putting the 

 piles into a sufficient depth, by choosing the right size 



(See "Houses," page two) 



