Tornado Shelters
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The safest place for school children during severe weather is a designed/engineered storm shelter that meets Federal Emergency Management Agency guidelines. PBA Architects has been at the forefront of tornado shelter design for more than 22 years. Corey Schultz is among the top designers in the country and has lead our firm in designing 50 shelters, protecting the lives of thousands of students and residents of Kansas.
What once may have been considered an acceptable storm shelter area just a few years ago, in all probability does not meet current FEMA guidelines. FEMA has developed guidelines for tornado safe areas that are intended to provide “near absolute protection” from 250 mph winds. This means minimizing the probability of death and injury during a tornadic event. To date, our firm has assisted school districts across the state in facilitating the use of over 6.4M dollars in funding from FEMA to design safe places.
Corey brings expert experience and insight, as a member on the review committee in the establishment of FEMA 361 guidelines and associated benefit cost analysis software. He has recently served as a voting member on the International Code Council (ICC) Consensus Committee on Storm Shelters, which regulates “the design, construction and installation of safe, reliable and economical storm shelters.” His advocacy of education to other professionals and consultants ensures many more shelters will be designed for the preservation of individuals and communities across the country.
Balancing creativity with expert knowledge of storm shelter design criteria, PBA has created multi-purpose rooms, classrooms, science labs, music & art rooms, and community activity spaces that also serve to protect people in the event of tornadic conditions. Without compromise of aesthetics or safety, PBA continues it's legacy of service with recent completion of projects offering shelter in Augusta and Wichita, Kansas.
PBA Architects is uniquely positioned to offer a full array of tornado shelter design services to concerned building owners, including site assessments of existing facilities, design analysis of existing refuge areas, determination of options for owners, design of new tornado safer areas and Peer Review.
