Myles Fairbairn

This project addressed the data and knowledge gaps and requirements for disaster resilience, resource assessment, emergency management, risk mitigation policy and planning. It identified the fundamental data requirements and modelling framework to derive exposure information to enable a better understanding of the vulnerability of people, buildings and infrastructure.

This study identified vulnerable legacy house types across Australia and developed cost-effective retrofits for mitigation damage during windstorms. These evidence-based strategies will aid policy formation and decision making by Government and industry, and provide guidelines detailing various options and benefits to homeowners and the industry for retrofitting typical at-risk houses in Australia. The final report presents an overview of the research approach used for this project including the selection of house types, the development of the Vulnerability and Adaptation to Wind Simulation software and the Internet-based guidelines, Weather the Storm.

Major findings of the research include the identification of the levels of hazard exposure which could lead to failure of structures and the other parameters affecting failure. Further, methods of modelling road structures under different loading regimes were developed with case studies of typical structures. New design approaches for building back better have been proposed for floodway structures based on parametric analysis of typical types of floodways. A major utilisation outcome of the project is a resilient floodway design guide, published in collaboration with the Institution of Public Works Engineers Australia Queensland.