Following Cyclone Evan a 4-person NIWA team travelled to Samoa to study flooding and wind damage (Graeme Smart, Richard Turner, Jo Bind, Ryan Paulik). They surveyed 200 buildings in central and southern Upolu to determine relationships between the damage sustained and the flood water depths or wind speeds causing the damage. The data are being analysed to determine the fragility of different types of buildings and construction materials. As well as identifying more resilient structures, such data can be used for modelling the cost of other flood or storm scenarios, including assessing the reduction in damage that would occur with various flood or storm mitigation methods. The team found that although there were fewer deaths, the damage from Cyclone Evan was worse than that caused by the Samoan tsunami in 2009. The work was undertaken as part of the "RiskScape" hazards programme.
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