Methodology for Virtual Damage Assessment and First-Floor Elevation Estimation<\/em><\/a>, and its data explore a different way to assess damage to buildings due to storm surges and massive waves. His case study focused on the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, which struck Fort Myers Beach, Florida, in September 2022. The Category 4 storm inflicted an estimated over $120 billion in damage across Florida and other parts of the U.S., affecting residential, commercial, and industrial properties. <\/p>\n\n\n\nCentral to the methodology was the use of publicly accessible visual media. The team employed a combination of street level imagery, drone footage, and pre- and post-storm aerial photos of buildings to virtually assess structural damage: targeting damage to roofs, whether exterior walls were compromised, and foundational integrity. Damage severity was measured using a 0 to 6 scale, ranging from no damage (DS0) to complete damage (DS6) Additionally, first-floor elevation of buildings\u2014an important variable in predicting building damage\u2014was also measured. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere were around 3,000 buildings in Fort Myers in which we did component-based damage assessment and first-floor elevation measurements,\u201d says Amini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Amini worked with undergraduate students to assist in assessing damage, using public imagery, and determining first-floor elevations and foundation characteristics using pixel-based scaling and stair-counting techniques derived from imagery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe had a workshop for them\u2014weekly meetings; we trained them how to do damage assessment,\u201d says Amini. \u201cFor me, it was really interesting to engage engineering students and teach them about the basic concepts of damage and risk assessment in coastal regions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a result, the findings demonstrate that damage assessment can be conducted virtually and cost-effectively using publicly available resources. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe looked at different building types, residential buildings, commercial buildings, wood frame, and masonry (structures). That\u2019s also a new kind of dataset in this field, because most of the data is specifically for wood-frame buildings,\u201d says Amini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The research also underscores the significance of building materials and proximity to the shoreline in determining structural damage\u2014concrete buildings, for instance, exhibited superior durability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe identify the correlation between different parameters and the damage,\u201d says Amini. For example, distance from the shoreline, foundation type, and building type; different agencies can use all those parameters to better understand damage in future events.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Using this method can not only help in damage assessments following major disasters but it can help inform those developing building codes when it comes to new construction and flood plain maps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cInterestingly the American Society of Civil Engineering last year published updated guidelines,\u201d says Amini. \u201cThey\u2019re going to require new buildings now be designed to withstand a 500-year flood event replacing the earlier 100-year design standard.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Though an award for his dataset, Amini\u2019s work continues. He says more data is needed and is continuing his work on damage assessment looking at the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene in 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 Nov. 5, 2025 \u2013 According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration almost 40% of the U.S. population lives in a coastal county. From Maine to Florida, severe flooding can be common. In the Ocean State, communities like Narragansett have houses and apartments within a stone\u2019s throw of the ocean. Despite the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":105088,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[25,1908,1905],"class_list":["post-105086","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives","tag-college-of-engineering","tag-faculty-excellence","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105086","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105086"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105086\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105096,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105086\/revisions\/105096"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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