University of Florida hurricane experts

May 5, 1998

NOTE: This package includes two stories as well as this source list.

With 10 tropical storms — six of them hurricanes — predicted for the 1998 hurricane season that starts June 1, the University of Florida offers these experts for comment on hurricane-related stories:

Wind damage to structures and utilities: Two professors have expertise in this area: Ron Cook, a structural engineer in UF’s civil engineering department, and Ajay Shanker, an associate professor in the school of building and construction. Cook, who has experience in post-storm damage assessment, can talk about wind damage to buildings and how hurricanes affect the electrical and utility system. Cook and Shanker, who helped develop Florida’s construction standards for emergency shelters built into new schools, can discuss the state’s hurricane-related building codes.

Impact on farmers and crops: Waldemar Klassen, director of UF’s Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences Tropical Research and Education Center in Homestead, saw firsthand the agricultural devastation wrought by Hurricane Andrew.

How to prepare: Reporters can find a wealth of tips on how to prepare for a hurricane through UF’s Florida Agricultural Information Retrieval System web site at http://hammock.ifas.ufl.edu/. Under the “special interest topics” section, clicking on “hurricane-related documents” will lead to a Disaster Handbook offering information on everything from what to do with pets as hurricanes approach to how to get federal and state financial assistance following storms. UF’s Florida Energy Extension Service encourages reporters to contact local family and consumer science agents for interviews about hurricane preparedness, but they may also contact Craig Miller, the extension service’s state coordinator for hurricane preparedness.

Beach damage/erosion: Bob Dean, a graduate research professor in the coastal and oceanographic engineering department, is one of the nation’s leading experts on beach erosion and has studied the effects of several hurricanes. In one of his most current studies, Dean, director of the state division of beaches and shores from 1985 to 1987, has determined that beachfront development does not influence beaches’ natural recovery after hurricanes.

Rebuilding/maintaining beaches: Mack Thetford and Deborah Miller, researchers based at UF’s West Florida Research and Education Center in Jay, currently are studying the best ways to rebuild Panhandle sand dunes flattened by Hurricane Opal.

Mike Kane, a UF environmental horticulturalist, is doing research on genetically improving sea oats to stay rooted in sand dunes better.

Beach mapping: Civil engineering professors Ramesh Shrestha and Bill Carter can discuss a high-tech laser system they say has the potential to revolutionize the process of mapping damaged beaches after hurricanes. The $1 million Airborne Laser Terrain Mapper could help workers begin rebuilding damaged beaches only hours after hurricanes strike, the researchers say.

Planning for hurricanes: Jeff Wade, director for environmental studies at UF’s Center for Governmental Responsibility, can discuss what county governments need to do to plan for hurricanes. Counties are required to address hurricane mitigation and post-disaster redevelopment as part of their comprehensive plans, Wade said.

Wave damage in nearshore areas: A professor in UF’s Department of Coastal and Ocean Engineering is researching how the slope of the seafloor just offshore can determine the severity of damage from hurricane-made waves. Michel Ochi’s Florida Sea Grant project looks at the offshore slope in front of 12 Florida locations in an effort to detemine just how big the waves might be should a hurricane make landfall at each location.