Research With the Oakland Hills Tunnel Fire of 1991, built environment conflagrations returned to United States cities. Wildfire, which had been viewed as a wildland and rural community problem, now was a catalyst for conflagration. Over the next three decades, the most catastrophic wildfires were often those where fire entered communities of the Wildland-Urban Interface…
Richburg, S.C., February 8, 2022 – Before severe weather threatens, the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) encourages Americans to prepare their homes and businesses with targeted actions to reduce the impact of storms and be thunderstorm ready. Every year, severe thunderstorms lead to hail-damaged roofs, wind-damaged garage doors and roofs, and all too often, structural damage that forces people from their homes and workplaces. IBHS’s Thunderstorm Ready and Thunderstorm Ready–Business guides can help home and business owners proactively protect their properties this spring to reduce the potential for costly damage and disruption.
Research IBHS conducts research on full-scale residential structures to understand performance under real-world conditions. Results are used to inform the IBHS FORTIFIED Standards and other guidance. Demonstration Two full-scale, two-story, 1,300-square-foot houses were placed next to each other in the test chamber—one built using conventional construction standards common in the Midwest, and one built to…
Engineers intentionally set a home on fire inside a facility in Chester County Wednesday to learn more about the devastation that wildfires can cause.
IBHS documents hail history using innovative 3D scanning technology.
The Insurance Institute for Business Home and Safety (IBHS) works with insurance companies to see how homes are affected by hurricanes, hail and wildfires. On this Wednesday, CN2’s Indira Eskieva takes inside of the facility for a rare look at how wildfires spread to homes.
Severe weather disrupts lives, displaces families, and drives financial loss. IBHS delivers top-tier science and translates it into action so we can prevent avoidable suffering, strengthen our homes and businesses, inform the insurance industry, and support thriving communities.
Residential Development on Historic Site Built to be Resilient from Extreme Winds
Research IBHS tests the impact resistance commercially available asphalt shingles using both 1.5- and 2.0-inch diameter laboratory manufactured hailstones using the IBHS hail impact testing protocol. Laboratory and field research by IBHS has shown that the impact energy and material properties of laboratory hailstone sizes can be directly related to typical natural hailstones in non-wind…
Event will showcase 3 easy steps to better protecting your home from wind, heavy rain
