Abstract
Extreme value analysis of wind data in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is described. Probabilistic models of wind behavior at twenty stations are generated, which yield the basic design wind speeds for a given recurrence interval in fastest mile units. The models are verified by the Chi-square and Kolmogorov-Smirnov goodness-of-fit tests at the 5 percent significance level. Basic design wind speeds are calculated at each station and an isotach map of design speeds for a 50 year mean recurrence interval is presented. The information obtained allows evaluation of design wind loads by the ANSI A58.1 procedure.