When Hurricane Laura came onshore Aug. 27 as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 150 mph, it shattered windows on nearly every level of the 22-story Capital One Tower in the Lake Charles, La., business district. The glass damage is perplexing to engineers who study wind dynamics and window performance.
It’s not unusual for a building’s lower-level windows to get knocked out by flying debris. But the fact the majority of the building’s windows were blown out — including dozens of windows on the upper levels — is remarkable, they say.