A building material that is in common use in Europe, but hasn't really caught on here is foamed concrete (Autoclaved Aerated Concrete, technically). They're large blocks that can be mortared together and can be worked with powered woodworking tools (drills, circular saws, etc) to make cavities/channels for utilities. They need some additional reinforced concrete to make them hurricane proof, but they're very fire resistant, are quiet, and go up relatively quickly. It's more expensive but lasts longer than wood framing.
The brick and stone homes here are actually masonry facade over wood frame. You need to have an air gap and flashing between the brick/stone and the wood, as water will seep through the mortar via capillary action fairly quickly, and stay there to rot the wood.
What does it mean to say that it lasts longer than wood framing? There are wood framed houses that are well over a century old, right? So is this being measured in centuries, or am I missing something important?
> There are wood framed houses that are well over a century old, right?
Yes, but that doesn't mean a wood-framed house built today wild last 100 years.
First, there's a survivor effect. Only the best wood-framed houses from 100 years ago are still around today. The rest have been pulled down over the course of that century.
The lumber used 100 years ago was true-sized -- a 2x4 was actually 2 inches by 4 inches. Today, the lumber is dimensional -- a 2x4 is actually 1.5 inches by 3.5 inches.
Houses were often overbuilt 100 years ago, because they weren't as confident in the engineering. Today, we're becoming more comfortable going to the engineering minimums. Thus, there's a lack of redundancy in the structure -- redundancy that may compensate for some construction shortfalls.
The building had not yet been properly attached to the foundation and the wind was record breaking (80+ mph). The wind likely went up under the structure and lifted it enough to push it off of it's foundation. NC is known to have regular hurricanes and tornadoes.
The brick and stone homes here are actually masonry facade over wood frame. You need to have an air gap and flashing between the brick/stone and the wood, as water will seep through the mortar via capillary action fairly quickly, and stay there to rot the wood.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1m5VShzxYs