A Vision for Windstorm Impact Reduction in the United States

Windstorms are among the largest loss-producing natural hazards in the United States, with hurricanes and tornadoes comprising a majority of the increase in loss events exceeding one billion dollars. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), between 1980-2017 windstorms caused over $1 trillion in economic losses and over 5,000 fatalities - highlighted most recently in 2017 by hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, which caused approximately $270 billion in economic losses and 251 deaths.

The National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP) is a federal interagency science-based program focused on achieving major measurable reductions in the losses of life and property from windstorms, by leveraging the latest science and best practices from across the four federal statutory program agencies (NOAA, NIST, NSF, and FEMA), other government agencies, academia, and the private sector.

As lead agency for the NWIRP, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has recently released the NWIRP strategic plan, which outlines a shared vision of windstorm impact reduction strategies developed by multiple stakeholder communities. The NWIRP strategic plan is founded on three goals: Improve understanding of windstorm processes and hazards; Improve understanding of windstorm impacts on communities; and Improve windstorm resilience of communities nationwide.

To realize the long-term goals of NWIRP will require a sustained interdisciplinary approach spanning meteorology, social science, engineering, and climate science. This presentation will discuss the goals and objectives of the NWIRP strategic plan, including those aspects focused on social and economic vulnerability issues.