Just follow the law?
CYCLONES are an inevitability if you live in the Pacific. The devastation and extent of damages to buildings and structures remain the most serious concern in their aftermath. Time and time again we see mainly homes blown down, predominantly in rural and maritime areas. I have experienced and been following cyclones since the widely remembered Hurricane Bebe in Fiji in 1972, and as an architect has studied a majority of them.
In Fiji, the most common materials for house construction are timber and corrugated iron although slightly different in urban centres, affordability being the decider on the grade of housing.
In studying the damages to residential houses, the common factor is roofs flying off as a result of walls collapsing. There seems to be very little connection between the roof and the walls, and the walls to the floor.
There are just a few (very) critical connections in building structures we need to keep in mind while constructing a house: roofing iron to the purlins (screws), purlins to the rafters (steel strapping), rafters to the beam/top plate (steel strapping or bolts), top plates to the walls (steel strapping), walls to the bottom plate (steel strapping/bolts), bottom plate to the floor (steel strapping or bolts), and floor to the ground (bolts and steel straps).
Regardless of the size and type of building these ‘connection’ principles remain the same. Of course, there are other aspects such as bracing to (mainly) timber construction. Corrugated iron act as a good bracing diaphragm.
All the connection types and methods are very well explained in detail in Fiji’s case, in the (Fiji) National Building Code (NBC) and also in the Home Construction Manual.
The NBC is an Act of Parliament in Fiji and by law all buildings should be built according to this law or at least should comply. NBC just did not appear from anywhere. It has been well thought, discussed and suited for the building of all types in Fiji and can be equally applied to the entire Pacific with similar climate and conditions.
It has been around for about 20 years as law. In fact, it was developed through aid by the Australian Government in the early 1980s and finally after years of debate etc., it was enacted by Parliament as law in 2003/4.
In the forty-eight years since Hurricane Bebe, we have made some improvements in urban housing, but I still see a lot of damages to buildings and structures in rural areas with residential buildings being the main causalities. Understandably, affordability is one key issue and it does cost to comply with the NBC.
However, the cost of implementing the correct connections, at least, should not cost more than $3500 per average house either in an urban or rural area. These comprise roof screws, steel strappings, bolts and nuts, etc. But again, these costs are controlled by the hardware merchants!
The NBC specifies for Category 3 wind loads. This also means up to lower limits of Category 4. We now see Category 5 cyclones and we will see this often from now on. It does not take much to amend the NBC. After STC Winston these issues were major topics of discussion, but concern appears to have died or slowed down and since then we have had a few more cyclones and again STC Yasa, another Cat 5.
After every cyclone and its aftermath people simply expect the government to assist in every way and every government does. Plus, help from unaffected areas, NGOs and families from all over pour in to assist in some way or the other.
If we construct in compliance with the codes, we will see minimal damages to houses and structures and over time we will hardly see any damages. Once we achieve this status assistance can be better directed to other critical development needs.
Our bigger neighbours, New Zealand and Australia, almost invariably come to rescue and are here on our shores within 12 to 24 hours without fail with loads of food and equipment and personnel. Other countries also eventually pitch in.
While I understand affected people immediately need food, water and clothes are we really helping them in the long run to avoid or mitigate future cyclone damages.
While short term help and assistance is necessary, it is the long term that we should be looking at. With the substantial aid coming from overseas donors after every major cyclone, we should utilise as much development assistance as we can to secure the homes to avoid reoccurrence. All we need to do is make people comply with the law. However, there are people who may not be able to afford full compliance with the law and that is where overseas aid should go.
Every area or region has public buildings such as schools, churches, government buildings that are being used as evacuation centres. The last thing you expect is these buildings to blow away. Most, if not all, public buildings are designed by professionals and you will hardly see any damage, hence, professional advice from the beginning is very critical.
People affected by cyclones actually turn their lives around in a matter of days or weeks and lives go on for them. Assistance also ends at some point and politicians from all sides disappear.
What we HAVE to do is:
License all building contractors and these can be in categories based on experience etc.
A builder has to have a fair knowledge of the NBC or at least the home construction manual version of it before he/she gets a license.
The local authorities to be mandated to check compliance, no ifs and no buts. Government to assist in rebuilding, but in compliance with the NBC period.
All new buildings to be endorsed by a professorial before lodging to any local authority for a permit to build. This is again being considered by the Government now. But why should it take so long and what and where seems to be the delay?
Cyclones are not in our way, rather, we are in their way. So, we have to adopt to their form and strengths and build to stand.
We all are very concerned about cyclones right now and every year but what about tsunamis and earthquakes and are we prepared?