
The conclusions and hundreds of photos presented in FEMA P-908 stem from core needs to: The MAT report focuses primarily on the performance of the following types of construction: The MAT report is a compilation of input from a team of over 200 design and construction experts from various industry groups, academic institutions, non-profit associations, government agencies, and small businesses.įEMA P-908 presents the MAT observations with 47 conclusions, and 49 recommendations directed at improving public safety and building performance during tornado events. It sets forth the MAT performance assessments of structures affected by the tornadoes, investigations of safe room and storm shelter performance, and documented lessons learned to help mitigate the loss of life and damage to buildings from future tornado events. The MAT report is titled FEMA P-908, Mitigation Assessment Team Report – Spring 2011 Tornadoes: April 25-28 and May 22 Building Performance Observations, Recommendations, and Technical Guidance (May 2012). Less than a month later, a powerful 0.75-mile-wide tornado struck Joplin, MO, destroying thousands of homes FEMA once again deployed the MAT, on June 1, 2011, to assess the tornado damage in Joplin. In response to this devastation, the FEMA Building Science Branch of the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (FIMA) deployed a Mitigation Assessment Team (MAT) to Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee on to assess the damage caused by tornadoes occurring April 25 through April 28, 2011.

This report is also dedicated to the families, friends, and communities suffering from their loss. The Spring 2011 Tornado MAT Report is dedicated to the memory of the victims of the April 25–28, 2011 tornadoes in the southeastern United States and the tornado that struck Joplin, Missouri. Today on the one year anniversary of the tragic Joplin, Missouri tornado, FEMA is pleased to release publication P-908. Eligible applicants for school safe room funding must apply through the State Hazard Mitigation Officer.įollow recovery updates in Missouri on Twitter and Get the latest information at Missouri's recovery website and FEMA's disaster webpage.įEMA's mission is helping people before, during and after disasters.Release of FEMA P-908 - 2011 Tornado MAT Report Other school safe rooms in Missouri school districts, including those of Webb City and Eldon, were built since the 2011 tornado.įEMA pays for 75 percent of safe room costs through the Hazard Mitigation Grants Program or the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program-both administered by the state. Joplin school shelters took in 1,500-1,700 occupants that day. Significant severe weather threatened Joplin and other parts of Missouri on May 22 this year, the eighth anniversary of the 2011 disaster. Severe weather with tornadoes often hits Missouri from those areas. The school district opens shelters when the National Weather Service issues warnings, but they also open them, Sachetta says, when a tornado touches down in southeast Kansas or nearby Oklahoma. “Safe rooms open during the day after weather warnings, but community residents may come here also if they have no other place to go,” said Sachetta. Joplin’s safe rooms also serve the community. “Our safe rooms are used as gyms, an office area, a television production studio, wrestling room, an industry tech classroom and a locker room,” said Joplin School District Assistant Superintendent, Dr. The shelters, located in the school buildings, can be reached quickly and easily by occupants.ĭuring blue sky days the safe rooms serve other purposes.

#Joplin missouri tornado safe rooms windows#
Doors and windows are protected by impact-resistant coverings. Made of reinforced concrete and impact-resistant walls and roofs, the safe rooms can withstand winds up to 250 mph.

The safe rooms, constructed to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency specifications, provide near-absolute protection against injury or death in extreme weather events. – The Joplin School District has built 14 safe rooms since 2011, when a deadly tornado killed 161, to shelter students and community residents when the next tornado strikes.
