Disasters

Portugal's OODA architectural firm has conceptualized a Disaster Education Centre that also doubles as an emergency shelter in the event of a real-life disaster. The center has been designed for the city of Istanbul and would be fully equipped with adequate technology and facilities to respond to a natural emergency. The center focuses on educating the public about disasters, with a special focus on earthquakes and floods. The design of the building reflects this theme, resembling an emergency cross symbol that has fallen onto its side, as if affected by an earthquake. Read More

Australian architecture firm LAVA exhibited its inhabitable "Origami Cave" as part of The Emergency Shelter exhibition, which was held in Sydney earlier this month. The exhibition featured architects from around the globe including Ateliers Jean Nouvel, PTW Architects, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer, Cox, Koichi Takada Architects, Sou Fujimoto and Terunobu Fujimori. Each architect was asked to create a shelter that would not only protect people from the elements during an emergency situation, but would also provide a space that was secure and comfortable in the aftermath of a disaster. Read More

Canadian design firm Molo has created a cheap and comfortable housing innovation for disaster relief situations.. Dubbed "softshelter," the system has been designed to create personal space within in a communal shelter, thus providing individuals or families with some privacy during a time of hardship. The softshelter modules are made from 100 percent recycled materials designed for re-use over a long period if time. The flexible walls pack flat, suitable for fast and cost effective shipping, whilst in a matter of minutes the softwalls can be unpacked and expanded to create walls and rooms. Read More

When the sandfish lizard wishes to escape predators, it can actually dive beneath the surface of the sand, and then swim through it. Inspired by the sandfish, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have created an undulating robot that can likewise swim through a granular medium. While that medium has so far consisted of quarter-inch plastic balls in a lab setting, the team hopes that their robot – or one of its descendants – could someday be used to tunnel through debris to rescue earthquake victims. Read More

In the aftermath of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that devastated Japan on March 11, 2011, the country faces a massive cleanup and rebuilding effort that will take years. To assist in the dangerous task of clearing hazardous debris that stretches for hundreds of miles along Japan’s east coast, the North American arm of global defense technology company QinetiQ has announced it will provide unmanned vehicle equipment and training to aid in the colossal undertaking. Read More

As Japan, and indeed the world, struggles to comprehend the devastation resulting from the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that struck on March 11, countries around the world have rushed to offer support in a number of ways. Amongst the aid flowing from the U.S. is a U-2 high-altitude, all-weather surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft that will be used to capture high-resolution, broad area synoptic imagery to help the Japanese identify the location and extent of damage caused by the earthquake and tsunami. Read More

Almost incomprehensible as the devastation from last Friday’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan has been, scientists warn that more aftershocks are on their way. In order to get all the information on current seismic activity in one place, researchers at Texas Tech University’s Center for Geospatial Technologies have developed an online, publicly-accessible world map that displays data on disturbances worldwide, almost as soon as they have occurred. Read More

Silver is well-known for its antibacterial qualities, which has led to the use of silver nanoparticles in devices such as an experimental water filtration system developed by Stanford University. That system is intended as a relatively permanent setup, and it requires a small electrical current. Researchers from Montreal’s McGill University, however, have come up with a silver-based water treatment system that could conceivably be used instantly, in any place and at any time. While not intended as a routine method of killing water-borne bacteria, it could be very useful in emergency situations such as disaster relief. Read More

Each year natural disasters and civil unrest leave hundreds of thousands of people homeless throughout the world. Many of these crises occur in developing nations where traditional building materials are either unavailable or prohibitively expensive, and where the focus is often on staying alive, not maintenance of a home. The ECO:Shield system from Innovative Composites International Inc. (ICI) may present a welcome solution. The earthquake and hurricane resistant houses use recyclable materials and according to ICI, are cheaper than both conventional and other modular constructions. They are energy efficient and durable – resisting moisture, insects, rot and mould. And they can be constructed quickly using unskilled labor: an 8' x 16' (2.4 x 4.9 meters) ECO:Shield house can be assembled in less than 45 minutes with standard tools. Read More