[Nathan Zachary]

They really can be amazing, and no warning at all. My neighbors to the north got it really bad, it flattened an 80 acre swath of pines, oaks, maple, and poplar trees they had on some forrest property they own. Quite amazing how these winds just swoop in and carve out an area like that, then just disappears. They say these shear winds can pack winds around 185 mph or more. There isn't really much study as to what causes them though.

But every though we get those odd "windigo's" (ghost winds) It's still better than living along the east coast in hurricane ally. Even though you get some warning, you know you have to fix or replace something, or loose it all maybe. May house would be made of good steel and cement anchored into a solid rock hill if I lived there, LoL!

[GummyIII]

I saw a house in Charleston, SC (where the brunt of Ophelia may still hit) that was built out of concrete in the shape of a geodesic dome. It was NEAT! It was beautiful, too! Also, old Civil War underground bunkers have been turned into beautiful homes which will withstand anything. That's how to build houses in hurricane country.