Herbert Saffir, hurricane strength scale creator, dies

[RebLem]

Herbert Saffir, 90, created hurricane scale

Published on: 11/26/07   |Atlanta Journal-Constitution

GULFPORT, Miss. — Herbert Saffir visited the Mississippi Coast after Hurricane Katrina at the invitation of Gulfport attorney Joe Sam Owen, who represents policyholders in their lawsuits against insurance companies.

Saffir, who lived and worked in Coral Gables, Fla., later talked to the Sun Herald about his post-Katrina visit and his desire to return.

"I'm anxious to go up and see what has been done and see if they're following some of the lessons that they should have learned after Camille. I hate to sound like that, but I think Camille's lessons were wasted, on the Gulf Coast anyway," Saffir said.

"They should have adopted tougher building codes after that. Another point is you have to have rigid enforcement of the codes. You can adopt and write a beautiful building code with all kinds of storm requirements in it. But if you don't have inspection and enforcement of the code, it's wasted."

Sadly, Saffir never got the chance to come back. Owen was trying to schedule a visit for January, but the 90-year-old who originated the Saffir-Simpson scale died Wednesday [Nov 21].

Saffir had planned to testify on behalf of policyholders Owen represents. "What an icon," said Owen. Owen admired Saffir's knowledge, integrity. Saffir, a structural engineer, had remained mentally and physically agile.

Working under a United Nations commission in 1969, Saffir developed a scale to measure a hurricane's potential for destruction based on wind velocities. It became the Saffir-Simpson scale in the 1970s after National Hurricane Center Director Robert Simpson expanded on the model.

Saffir remained until his death an advocate and educator regarding building design to resist wind forces.

Although he agreed Katrina's storm surge caused unprecedented destruction along the Mississippi Coast, he saw considerable evidence of wind damage. He told Owen buildings along the Mississippi Coast were not designed to withstand wind gusts of even 120 to 135 miles per hour.

Owen said he will never forget how excited Saffir became when he saw a palm tree snapped in half along the neutral ground of U.S. 90 in Biloxi.

"He told me that it took a 150 mile-per-hour wind to snap that palm tree, a thick one," Owen said. "He was really intrigued by that. He was really impressed."

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