A team from North Carolina State University are testing new designs for these walls that could reduce damage to homes and buildings should a severe storm hit. They have built upon existing designs of the breakaway walls in an effort to provide more choice to coastal residents. People who live along North Carolina's coast face the potential for devastating damage to their homes and businesses every hurricane season.
Evacuation can prevent loss of life, but preventing loss of property is more challenging.
Buildings on stilts may epitomise coastal style, but homeowners often want to enclose that ground-level space. Strong walls absorb the surging water, which could jeopardise the whole building s foundation during a storm. To counter this, breakaway walls are designed for use on the ground floor of buildings in coastal flood zones. To minimise damage from storm surges, peak insurance organisations recommend that these homes and businesses be built on pilings, or stilts, and that the ground floor be used only for access, parking or storage. Property owners who choose to enclose this space are urged to use walls that will break away from the rest of the house when pressure exerted on them by a storm surge reaches a certain stress load.