Emergency shelter that goes the distance
© 2012 Fred W. Baker, U.S. Department of Defense
The transition from emergency to permanent housing following natural catastrophes is slow and fraught with obstacles, as can still be seen today in Port-au-Prince, years after the earthquake that brought the city to the ground.
Last year, the Steel Structures Laboratory received funding from the EPFL’s Cooperation Seed Fund to organize an international workshop to develop ideas related to fast reconstruction of disaster struck sites. The output of the workshop as well as a series of initial studies suggest a paradigm change in relief housing efforts, due largely to the increasing number of interventions in densely populated areas. Rather than focusing on individual housing, easy to assemble and disaster resistant multi-story buildings with integrated utilities and services could provide a more optimal solution. Once the need for emergency housing subsides, these buildings can be adapted to function as government or community buildings. Besides allowing for a more efficient use of space, they could also facilitate the acceptance of new technologies in developing regions.