If panels popped for Ida, what'll happen in a really big storm? - al.com

If panels popped for Ida, what'll happen in a really big storm? - al.com: "THE GULF State Park Pier should have held up better than it did this week, when Tropical Storm Ida put it out of commission just months after it opened.

The new structure — built for $16.2 million to replace the old pier that was wiped out by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 — was supposed to be designed to stand up to the big storms at the expense of wooden deck panels that would essentially pop out without damaging the underlying pilings.

In February, Gulf State Park assistant superintendent Trey Myers told the Press-Register, 'In a Cat 3 storm, we'd probably lose those wood panels and some of the railings, but the pier substructure should be OK. Of course, there's no guarantee about anything.'"