Florida, and especially that part known as The Keys, is faced with unique climatic conditions; the most dramatic, and destructive, being those of hurricanes. A historical overview of the quantity of named storms clearly reflects the magnitude of natural events that have struck this part of Florida, causing damage almost beyond comprehension. To protect its citizens, the Monroe County Board of Commissioners, with its Department of Emergency Management, embarked upon a program to establish a new, stand-alone emergency operations center (EOC). An EOC is the facility type in which critical governmental entities, as well as private sector groups such as utility companies and the Red Cross, gather to formulate response plans during an activation prior to, during, and after a storm event or other incident that affects the county.
To assist with the cost of the facility, the county was successful in securing funding which included grants from FEMA and the State of Florida, along with funds from the county.
As a result of its unique location on the island of Marathon, situated halfway between Key West and Key Largo, the facility faced storm forces of a magnitude greater than those commonly affecting a typical EOC structure. To compound the complexity of the project, the state, through the Division of Emergency Services, mandated that the structure be capable of withstanding forces beyond those of a Category 5 storm or even the greater storm designation of near absolute, by introducing a new criteria designated as the Ten-Thousand Year Storm, a storm that would create immeasurable damage and destruction.
Criteria included storm surge waves of 18-20 feet, flooding over the island during a sustained period, as well as wind loading of 205 mph, and 225 mph for a three second gust. Such rigorous criteria were far beyond that utilized for designing standard EOCs.
Architects Design Group, a Florida-based firm that specializes in the design of facilities of this type throughout the nation, was selected to program and design this unique facility. ADG had previously provided (or is currently providing) architectural services for similar facilities in numerous Florida locations, such as the Counties of Seminole, St. Lucie, Hernando, Sarasota, Palm Beach, Clay, Osceola, Okeechobee, and Lake, as well as facilities in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Montana, Missouri, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Delaware. It is, in many respects, an emerging art form and a very specialized building type.
This particular structure, with a finish floor of 123′-0″, is elevated 23 feet above the existing grade (100′) and is situated on a base pad approximately four feet above grade, creating an area utilized for the protection of emergency response vehicles during relatively minor storm events. To achieve access to the elevated building, vertical circulation elements also had to be protected from the hydrostatic pressure of storm surge waves, as well as the sustained wind loading, providing a safe means of access and/or egress.
As designed, the facility and its sophisticated services and technology, incorporated some forty plus years of EOC design experience and lessons learned as reflected in ADG’s book, Public Safety Architecture. The basic building program premise was to provide specialized spaces that permit governmental entities to provide appropriate emergency response during an activation, in essence, the typical protocol for an EOC as established by the Federal Department of Emergency Management (FEMA), as well as those functions mandated by the State of Florida (FDEM).
Everything needed to be fully capable of withstanding forces of a unique and dynamitic nature. Therefore, it was key to the planning process that facility be totally survivable based upon the adage that it is only as strong as its weakest link. To ensure the survivability of the critical facility, the detailed design of every exterior element was required, such as windows, frames, doors, fresh-air intakes, plumbing vents, exhaust baffles, exterior electrical outlets, towers, etc.
Of the many lessons learned working on such a specialized building type, we have found the failure of any exterior element generally means that exterior forces quickly become interior forces and render a facility unusable. Thus, every element or system, located on the exterior, must be fully capable of withstanding all the unique criteria of a 10,000 Year Storm, and remain fully capable of continued operational capacity over a sustained period. No small task, especially when it is considered that this has never been attempted before, for these series of unique circumstances.
Further responding to the mandate of survivability is the need to not only have the building survive, but to have it remain fully operational as the island floods. This mandated the inclusion of dual emergency generators, each fully capable of providing 100% of electrical demand, based upon the learned experience that emergency generators, when placed in continued operations over a sustained period, have demonstrated a regrettable propensity to fail. The loss of electrical service, even for a short duration, quickly renders a facility unusable, particularly in structures that are entirely sealed, with no natural light, nor natural air movement. Redundancy of all critical systems is of paramount importance. These are, by their nature, expensive decisions, difficult for tax payers and the general public to accept when we are in a period of economic stress, yet imperative if the facility is to be capable of functioning for its intended and critical purpose.
With this structure, Monroe County both addresses the unique criteria related to its geographical location, as well as providing emergency services during periods of unique events, be they man-made or natural forces. Today, we face a different world, one which has, unfortunately, brought to the forefront the inclusion of acts of terrorism into our emergency response vocabulary and the public eye. This building was designed to address those issues, both natural and man-made, in an appropriate, secure, and cost-effective manner.
Updated: 2020. Click here to purchase the original publication.
