Tornado research shows southwest corner hazardous
Tornado! A word calculated to make Midwestern residents very uneasy. And nearly everyone in this part of the country has heard the old admonition to seek safety in the southwest corner of the house if a tornado is sighted.
Now, however, research at the University of Kansas under the direction of Dr. J. R. Eagleman, head of the meteorology curriculum, is proving that instead of saving lives, this advice may send many to a death trap.
The research started more than a year ago as a result of data gathered after the tornado that struck Topeka in 1966. It was found in the aftermath that most of the serious damage occurred in the southwest corner of homes that did not have basements. And even in Kansas, which is supposedly part of "tornacio alley," a surprisingly small number of homes actually have basements or storm cellars.
Dr. Eagleman's research has
Jn.13 1969 KANSAN 7
taken him to Ohio, Mississippi and Florida to examine damage caused by tornados. In these areas, as in Topeka, the southwest corner was generally the most dangerous.
The men are studying the effects of various wind velocities and pressures on the structure of differently shaped model homes. This will enable them to determine what shape houses and what building materials hold up the best under stress.
"Most tornados really do come from the southwest. In the past, weathermen have advised people to take shelter there, thinking that the worst of the damage would pass over quickly, leaving them safe. In actuality, when people take shelter in the southwest corner of the house on the first floor, not the basement, the brunt of the impact strikes the southwest, carrying with it heavy debris that may endanger those in that corner," Eagleman explained.
the research on safety, he is also working with Dr. Vincent Muirhead, associate professor of aerospace engineering, and Dr. Nicholas Willems, professor of structural engineering, on a test of model homes in wind tunnels.
According to Dr. Eagleman, the number of tornados hasn't really increased in the past few years. It is simply that more of them are being reported, thanks to a more efficient communications system. The same is true with the seemingly unusual locations of tornadoes—Ohio and Mississippi—hardly in the Midwest, the traditional home of tornadoes. They have always been there, they just weren't reported.
Even in homes that do have basements, the southwest corner is not the safest. If a tornado is sighted, it is the north or northeast corner of the house, either on the first floor or in the basement, that is the most safe.
Working with Dr. Eagleman on the project are two graduate students, Marvin Stone, DeSoto, Phil Garner, Greeley, and one undergraduate, Mike Putman, Leawood.
The research on the safest part of the home during tornados has been funded by the U.S. Public Health Service for a five-year period. Next year's grant to Dr. Eagleman is for $27,138. Besides
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