After Hurricane Hugo battered South Carolina in 1989 and Andrew hit Florida and Louisiana in 1992, hundreds of local governments had a window of opportunity. Pointing to these huge storms, officials could have argued that homes and businesses must be built stronger to withstand ferocious winds. Instead, while population and development boomed along shorelines, many communities essentially ignored the hurricane threat. Very few localities, in fact, tightened building codes and boosted enforcement. Dozens of metropolitan areas failed to establish adequate evacuation routes and safe public shelters.
Governments can take a number of measures to reduce future hurricane damage.
To its credit, South Florida has taken a number of steps to reduce local impacts from hurricanes. But in this decade, the region's greatest mitigation achievement, by far, has been to strengthen its building codes. South Florida is the only major urban area to toughen the high-wind provisions in its codes and enforcement since Andrew. In addition, South Florida counties have instituted strict testing and approval for all building products so that materials are more likely to withstand hurricane-force winds and other pressures. But now this achievement is being undercut.