flexiblefullpage
Currently Reading

Building Hurricane-Proof Homes in Puerto Rico

Advertisement
billboard

Building Hurricane-Proof Homes in Puerto Rico


July 16, 2019
Puerto Rico
Photo: Unsplash/ Tatiana Rodriguez

In the wake of Hurricane Maria, one Puerto Rican architect has created a design for a modular and affordable hurricane-proof home, NPR reports.

"We have more than a half million people affected. And we have to build, minimum, 75,000 homes, " says Astrid Diaz, a well-known architect in Puerto Rico. She was part of a FEMA team that assessed the island's infrastructure after the storm.

Since the storm, Diaz has a new project. She's designed a modular home, resistant to hurricane-force winds that she says can be built for $30,000. Not coincidentally, that's the maximum amount of assistance FEMA makes available for homeowners. "I started thinking that I need to design a house for people in Puerto Rico, a house where they feel safe."

"It's strong," because the foam panels are covered with a galvanized steel mesh that provide structure and load-bearing capacity, she says. Once the polyurethane foam and steel panels are available on site, Diaz says, "it's easy then to [assemble] a house in a few days." Mortar is then applied to the exterior, adding weight and structural stability and giving it the appearance of a typical Puerto Rican home made from concrete blocks and cement.

Read more
 

Advertisement
leaderboard2

Related Stories

Environmental

How a Climate Crisis Is Affecting Housing Affordability

Climate emergencies caused an estimated $57 billion in damage in 2021, and as Americans continue to rebuild from extreme weather events, housing is getting more expensive

Planning + Development

Denver Officials Turn to Adaptive Reuse to Boost Housing Supply

Downtown Denver is home to dozens of empty office buildings, which present a prime opportunity for multifamily development, city officials say 

Environmental

Drought Regions Are Seeing an Influx of New Homebuyers—Here's Why

Homebuyers undaunted by severe droughts are heading to at-risk metros like Los Angeles and Las Vegas en masse

Advertisement
boombox2

Top Articles

Advertisement
boombox1
Advertisement
native1
halfpage2

More in Category

COVID-19 may be easing its grip on the U.S. after a disastrous two years, but lingering supply chain disruptions have builders holding onto their pandemic business tactics

An archive of NHQA-winning companies that represent home building's best in Total Quality Management

Don’t let the current hype about single-family B2R communities obscure the need to create long-term sustainability and asset value

Advertisement
native2
Advertisement
halfpage1

Create an account

By creating an account, you agree to Pro Builder's terms of service and privacy policy.


Daily Feed Newsletter

Get Pro Builder in your inbox

Each day, Pro Builder's editors assemble the latest breaking industry news, hottest trends, and most relevant research, delivered to your inbox.

Save the stories you care about

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet lorem ipsum dolor sit amet lorem ipsum dolor sit amet.

The bookmark icon allows you to save any story to your account to read it later
Tap it once to save, and tap it again to unsave

It looks like you’re using an ad-blocker!

Pro Builder is an advertisting supported site and we noticed you have ad-blocking enabled in your browser. There are two ways you can keep reading:

Disable your ad-blocker
Disable now
Subscribe to Pro Builder
Subscribe
Already a member? Sign in
Become a Member

Subscribe to Pro Builder for unlimited access

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.