J’cans urged to build more climate resilient homes

WITH AN increase in the frequency and intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes throughout the region, Dr Barbara Carby, director of the Disaster Risk Reduction Centre at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, says it is critical that Jamaicans begin to construct more climate-resilient houses.

Dr Carby, who was addressing a recent public forum titled ‘Hurricane-Resistant Construction for Householders,’ said the goal is to build homes that can withstand a Category Five hurricane.

The forum, which was held at the Mona Visitors’ Lodge at The UWI, Mona, in St Andrew last week, was sponsored by JN Bank and featured presentations from architects, engineers, and other stakeholders in the construction sector.

Carby noted that since 2017, the Caribbean has experienced several category five storms, which caused severe damage to many territories, including The Bahamas, Dominica, and The Turks and Caicos Islands.

“As I went through the region, the question which kept popping up was: Can one design and construct a small building to withstand a Category Five hurricane? I, therefore, believe that it is important that homeowners are armed with the basic information they need to be able to police home repair or the construction of their homes,” she said.

Carby further noted that eventually, Jamaica may also need to revisit the National Building Code, to take into account the reality of more intense weather patterns.