The tornado: An engineering-oriented perspective

Fundamental concepts of tornado-building interaction phenomena are discussed to assist the meteorologist in understanding and interpreting wind damage, and to assist the engineer in assessing wind resistance of building construction. Studies of tornadic windspeeds and atmospheric pressure change indicate that: (1) buildings fail at relatively low windspeeds; (2) no conclusive evidence can be found that ground level windspeeds exceed 250 mph (112 m/s); (3) most building damage is caused by winds in the 75-125 mph (34-56 m/s) range; and (4) atmospheric pressure changes in tornadoes play only a minor role in the damaging mechanism.