NEWPORT –– You can protect yourself from a hurricane, but what about your home?

Building structures that can survive a severe hurricane can help a community recover after a disaster, by allowing people to return to their homes and companies and government to resume business.

During Friday’s Northeast Hurricane Mitigation Leadership Forum, representatives from the insurance and engineering fields, researchers from the University of Rhode Island, emergency management officials, and the director of the National Hurricane Center discussed the lack of preparation among the public for hurricanes, and some solutions. The conference was sponsored by WeatherPredict Consulting Inc., the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes, RenaissanceRe and the University of Rhode Island.

Bill Read, the director of the National Hurricane Center, has seen the challenges in science, human nature and complacency. Forecasters are challenged by the fickle nature of hurricanes, which can veer and duck without warning and leave public safety officials scrambling to give people enough time to evacuate.

But some never figure out what they’ll do in an emergency until it happens. Some communities allow rebuilding in places that were destroyed by a disaster, without adopting building codes that would prevent more losses.

One motivation for change is the cost of cleanup and rebuilding. In Rhode Island, the insured value of coastal property is estimated at $54.1 billion, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Yet, a recent survey by the institute found that only 21 percent of people living in the Northeast have taken steps to protect their homes from a disaster. Of those who didn’t, 31 percent said it was too expensive –– although it would also be expensive to rebuild, said Jeanne Salvatore, spokeswoman at the institute.

Nanette Lockwood, an engineer and lobbyist for Solutia Inc., which produces products including safety glass, examined the building codes in the Northeast and found weaknesses in most, including in Rhode Island.

This state adopted the 2006 national codes, while making some amendments, such as reducing the area where buildings are to be constructed to withstand 120-mph wind zones. That’s within the range of a Category 3 hurricane, with the intensity of the Great Hurricane of 1938.

John Leyden, commissioner of the Rhode Island State Building Commission, said the 120-mph zone was set for all construction below Route 1A for enforcement purposes; the national codes would have put the range, in some cases, right through houses and property. Construction above Route 1A, including Aquidneck Island, to the borders of Warwick and East Greenwich, must withstand 110-mph winds, the top of a Category 2 hurricane.

The national code would have put Aquidneck Island and every region within a mile of Narragansett Bay under wind-debris protection zones; the state decided to include only the south coast region where construction must meet codes for 120-mph winds. Leyden said the committee thought it was important to first adopt the code for the most threatened region and educate builders on the new construction. He said the committee is looking to adopt the rest of the code later.

Rhode Island has never seen a Category 4 hurricane, with 131- to 155-mph winds, or a Category 5 storm, and meteorologists don’t think either is likely. “Clearly, if a hurricane comes up, and it’s a 4 or 5, we’ll have issues,” Leyden said. “We’ll have a lot of damaged homes and destroyed homes.”What you can do

Wondering whether you are prepared for hurricane season?

• Visit your municipal building department and check when your house was constructed. The building officials will be able to tell you what codes applied at the time it was built. For years, Rhode Island building codes have required anchor bolts, hurricane clips and rafter ties that keep the house tied down, says John Leyden, commissioner of the Rhode Island State Building Commission. Older houses can be retrofitted to be “hurricane resistant.”

• Inspect your home for its ability to weather a storm. A do-it-yourself animated video by the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes at www.flash.org shows what to look for. Have a flashlight and stepladder handy.

• Protect your windows and doors from debris tossed by high winds during a hurricane. While your house may be built to withstand internal pressure if wind blows inside, the heavy rains and debris that follow could make your home uninhabitable. Using shutters, boarding up with plywood, or installing impact-resistant windows and doors can keep the wind and rain out, says Tim Reinhold, of the nonprofit Institute for Business and Home Safety. For more tips on weather protection, check the state’s hurricane resource guide at www.GetHurricaneReadyRI.org or www.flash.org.

• When a hurricane is bearing down, don’t waste your time on mythical solutions. Masking tape doesn’t keep your windows from shattering, and leaving your windows open a little to “relieve the pressure” only invites trouble. Keep the windows closed and shuttered or boarded up, says Leslie Chapman-Henderson, president of FLASH.

• Learn now what your insurance covers and what it doesn’t. The deductible for windstorm damage is separate, and may range from 1 to 5 percent of your home’s insured value, or as high as 25 percent in some areas, said Jeanne Salvatore, of the Insurance Information Institute. You may need to buy flood insurance –– even a few inches of water can cause tremendous damage.

amilkovi@projo.com