A storm shelter meeting FEMA standards can provide "near absolute" protection from tornadoes and hurricanes.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has developed building standards and designs for home, business, and community safe rooms (also called storm shelters) that provide protection to occupants in a tornado or hurricane. The agency also has developed performance standards for materials used in constructing such structures. FEMA provides these designs and standards in two free publications that are available for download from its library website.
FEMA 320, Taking Shelter From the Storm
FEMA 320 is a 58-page publication that provides standards and designs for construction of safe rooms inside homes and small businesses. A room built according to the guidance can provide "near-absolute protection" from storm injury or death, according to the publication. The information includes results of 30 years of research by Texas Tech University's Wind Science and Engineering program and other such programs. FEMA offers designs for basement, garage, and interior rooms in the publication. The designs comply with the International Code Council's "Standard for the Design and Construction of Storm Shelters," also referred to as ICC-500.
FEMA 361, Design and Construction Guidance for Community Safe Rooms
FEMA 361 provides FEMA standards and designs for community safe rooms, which typically serve 12 to several hundred people. The designs provided in the 374-page publication meet and exceed ICC-500 criteria, according to FEMA.
Approvals and Inspections
FEMA does not have an approval or inspection process. The agency defers to local planning authorities that normally issue building permits and inspect construction. The builder or owner makes sure the shelter meets the specifications of the FEMA-provided plans or another accepted set of standards. Besides the codes and standards developed by FEMA and the ICC, the National Storm Shelter Association (NSSA) also has developed a design standard that refers to the FEMA and ICC standards. The NSSA places its seal on manufactured storm shelters that meet the standard.
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