This Science News Wire page contains a press release issued by an organization and is provided to you "as is" with little or no review from Science X staff.

Hard look at hurricane strategy

September 7th, 2010

Two years after Hurricane Ike slammed into the Gulf Coast, the storm's impact is still being evaluated. While officials have focused a great deal of effort on long-term protection from hurricanes, including a much-discussed "Ike Dike," there has been too little discussion of short-term planning.

On the storm's anniversary, researchers and managers from public, private and academic institutions will gather at Rice University to discuss what has been learned in the years since Ike. The annual conference held by Rice's Center for Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters (SSPEED) will focus on strategies to help Gulf Coast communities respond rapidly to stem the devastation caused by storm surges and inland flooding.

The conference will take place two years to the day after Ike's Texas landfall on Sept. 13 at Rice University's BioScience Research Collaborative, 6500 Main St. It will begin at 8:30 a.m., and end with a reception at 4:30 p.m.

Speakers will include experts on storm surge, flood prediction, transportation systems, civil engineering, homeland security, flooding and storm mitigation, and structural and nonstructural strategies for protecting Galveston Bay.

"Our research indicates that for capital-intensive structural solutions, it is clear that the community will be left vulnerable by the extended time it takes to design, fund, permit and construct such a major feature as the Ike Dike," said Phil Bedient, director of the SSPEED Center and Rice's Herman Brown Professor of Engineering. "There are better ways to address storm surge and inland flooding, such as a mix of structural and non-structural alternatives that can be employed in less time and at a lower cost."

SSPEED, Rice's Civil and Environmental Engineering Department and the office of the dean of Rice's George R. Brown School of Engineering are sponsors of the conference. The cost to attend is $50.

For details on the conference and a list of speakers, go to hydrology.rice.edu/sspeed/sspe … 10/sspeed_about.html

Provided by Rice University

Citation: Hard look at hurricane strategy (2010, September 7) retrieved 18 August 2026 from https://sciencex.com/wire-news/45325721/hard-look-at-hurricane-strategy.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.