At a place called Koroipita in NW Fiji a bloke designed and built 230 cheap houses and they survived Winston with hardly a scratch.

http://fijisun.com.fj/2016/02/28/the-homes-strong-enough-to-beat-winstons-wrath/

Now these buildings are not much to look at and I don't know about air con and other modern amenities, but the project is worth a look at for rebuilding the devastation. I do not even know if they are timber or steel framed but the structural concepts or should be looked at.

We have been building houses in Nth Qld for ages that are supposedly able to withstand cyclones, so let us compare how they have fared to the structures in Fiji.

I would like to see a team of engineers look at this project while the other devastation is still about with the idea of incorporating the basic strengths into future house construction.

Here is an opportunity to learn how to do things better

Hi Banjo,

I have never considered the general house construction in many Fijian villages all that safe, and have often thought when being inside, "Gee, I don't think I'd like to be inside here in a cyclone!". Some houses constructed from cement blocks with timber shutters look more substantial, but...300km/hr winds. Low lying flooding is also a major problem, with crop destruction a real headache.
Friends in a village 30 minutes off the coast of Rakiraki District, their village is okay, the water supply has been cut off, the PVC pipe has been destroyed and the village church lost some windows, three houses lost their roofs, but otherwise all okay. The church and the houses are getting fixed now, but the water supply is going to take a little longer, they have the money available but need "tradies" and materials.

Paul,
I saw this article and thought it interesting for any area that gets cyclones.

Did you read the article and do you know the place?

Obviously there will be a lot of rebuilding in Fiji and if some ideas from this project can be incorporated it should be an advantage.

I wish all the best for Fiji and hope we can learn from projects like this village that survived.

The cyclone around Lautoka was moderate with the eye passing to the north, but the winds were still damaging. The village at Koroipita is an example of, as Mr Drysdale said “It’s more than just houses, this is a community we built here, and it’s a complete holistic solution". At $13K each, well Australia/New Zealand/US/China etc, and a bit of that back door aid to Fiji from India, could do a lot with a piddling $130m. Cyclone Winston being a disaster as it was on the one hand, also presents an opportunity to do something worthwhile for the future on the other.
My partner "T" volunteered us yesterday to go over in June or July, she can't help herself, the org we are associated with is focused on education around Sigatoka, wants to talk about university and trade education for some kids, Sigatoka is 1 hour from Nadi going towards Suva, in the opposite direction to Lautoka, been to Lautoka several times, an okay market town with a big sugar mill.