Dr Korah Parackal

Dr Korah Parackal is at the forefront of analysing and assessing the ways in which cyclones and other strong wind loads impact housing.

Korah’s PhD examined the dangers of losing fasteners on the roof of a home during a cyclone by using a wind tunnel to test the connections and surveying past cyclone damage to finally create a model that demonstrates progressive and cascading failures within a simulation.

“My PhD research studied the way roofing connections of houses fail in a progressive or cascading manner during severe winds,” Korah explained. “It was able to determine what parts of the roof are most vulnerable and how damage spreads.”

The outcomes of his PhD have allowed for the design and construction of more resilient structural systems and techniques for retrofitting existing structures.

In 2018, Korah was a finalist at the Early Career Researcher competition conducted by the CRC Association, and his research was also voted as the crowd favourite at the 13th America’s Conference on Wind Engineering in 2017. He presented at the CRC’s Research Forum in 2015 and gave a Three Minute Thesis at Research Driving Change – Showcase 2017.

Post-PhD, Korah was a researcher on the CRC project Improving the resilience of existing housing to severe wind events. Through this project, he has led the development of a new website called Weather the Storm to inform buildings and homeowners about how to improve an existing home’s key structural connections against extreme wind. The website is packed with helpful information about how to improve the strength and safety of a house, guiding users through three levels of protection: general maintenance, window and door protection, and roof tie-down retrofitting (offering the most protection).