Thinking Outside the Tent
Thinking Outside the Tent:
The Use of International Shipping Containers for Emergency Housing in Haiti
Watching the news about the 10 January 2010 Haitian earthquake and the human suffering in its wake have created various questions about how the United States and the international community will address the short-term, intermediate and long-term shelter and public health needs of the people of Haiti. It is estimated by the United Nations, as of 12 February 2010 there were three million people affected by the earthquake.[1] The Government of Haiti estimates there were 212,000 deaths, 700,000 people were displaced in Port-au-Prince and 467,000 people had departed Port-au-Prince, as of the middle of February 2010.[2]
All the people of Haiti have been affected massively by the earthquake of 12 January 2010. The lack of food, shelter, clean water, sanitation and hygiene are the most acute needs.[3] The vast majority of the people affected by the earthquake are in dire need of adequate shelter before the rainy season begins.[4] “Shelter is not just about having a building in which you can sleep, it is also about regaining your dignity after living on the streets. It’s about having a home so that you can start to rebuild your life,” explains Carmen Ferrer, a shelter expert with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) “Shelter is a pressing and complex need [outside the capital],” said Alexandre Claudon, IFRC special envoy to Haiti.[5] “Yes, it means cover, but also kitchen sets, jerry cans, buckets and even blankets for villages in the mountains.”[6]
Previous to the earthquake the vast majority of people in Haiti lived in masonry buildings. Many of the buildings were built with no plans and with only the materials that could be scraped together as the people could afford materials and their families grew. There were no building codes in effect at all in Haiti.[7] Presently, masses of people have been removed from their masonry structure homes which either collapsed or are not safe to inhabit. People are sleeping and shielding themselves from the elements in makeshift tent cities of plastic and fabric tarps, cardboard and sheet metal.
The earthquake hit in a “dry” month, January, for Haiti. Many in the international community as well as those in the Haitian government are concerned that once the rainy season begins in March, the makeshift cities in which the displaced people of Haiti are living will create muddy fields and ponding water, infested with mosquitoes. The fear is that both the standing water and the muddy fields will contain high concentrations of human fecal coliform and E. coli, due to the current lack of sanitation facilities, as well as other disease vectors which will cause epidemics of malaria, diarrhea, typhoid, upper respiratory ailments and other diseases.
The Haitian government and some international organizations are calling for housing victims of the earthquake to be housed in tents.[8] USAID and IFRC[9] have expressed concern about the use of thousands of tents to house the refugees. USAID has called for “thinking outside of the tent.”[10]
Sitting unused in many of the world’s major ports are shipping containers which can be readily modified to act as emergency housing and semi-permanent housing for the refugees of Haiti.[11] International shipping containers are sturdy resources for building, in particular for emergency housing. The need for safe housing for the victims of the earthquake is acute and must be addressed with dispatch.[12]
With the Haitian rainy season quickly approaching it is imperative to get adequate shelter in place for the refugees. International shipping containers should be considered as an optimum answer to the short term and permanent answer to shelter by the international agencies providing aid to Haiti.
In order to facilitate the use of international shipping containers for emergency housing, initial modifications to the containers should be made by craftsmen in the port at which the containers are found. This would expedite the shipment of container housing and permit placement on site in Haiti within a short time of arrival in Haiti.
Eventually, craftsmen can be sent with the containers with the raw materials used for modification into housing to Haiti. Secure fabrication sites should be established near the place of debarkation. Modifications to the containers will initially be made by the foreign craftsmen at these fabrication sites. The foreign craftsmen would be tasked to training local craftsmen to modify the international shipping containers and make them into housing for the people of Haiti.[13]
International shipping containers have a standard dimension of 14.6 m x 2.4 m or 16.2 m x 2.4 m.[14] Containers are readily available throughout the world because of the downturn in trade because of the worldwide recession.[15] Predictions for February are expected to reach as much as 750,000 TEU’s shipping containers which are not needed at the present time and laying dormant or unused in various ports and cities throughout the world.[16]
Used international shipping containers are available at a cost that is low compared to a finished structure built by labor-intensive means such as bricks and mortar, which also require larger more expensive foundations, and are unsuitable without proper construction techniques for earthquake prone areas. Construction of shipping container housing involves very little labor. Used shipping containers require only simple modification and can be purchased from major transportation companies for as little as $1,200 USD each. Even when purchased brand new they seldom cost more than $6,000 USD.[17]
Modification of the shipping container into housing will require extra materials and welding/cutting of steel. Welding/cutting of steel is considered to be specialized labor and can increase construction costs, yet overall the costs are still lower than conventional construction. All shipping containers are made to the same standard measurements and as such they provide modular elements that can be combined into larger structures. This simplifies design, planning and transport. As containers are already designed to interlock for ease of mobility during transportation, structural construction is completed by simply emplacing them.
Wherever the containers are modified for housing there would need to be various materials used to make the shipping containers habitable. Places for doors and windows would be cut by welders working on the steel containers. Prefabricated vinyl windows and doors with screens and storm shutters could either be installed prior to shipping or after the structure is placed on site in Haiti.
The structure must meet, at the minimum, the Florida Building Code,[18] in use in the Florida counties where hurricane resistance is critical for structures. Prior to shipping, the existing wooden floor of the shipping container would be removed as this wood contains dangerous pesticides.[19] In place a recycled, fire retardant plastic raised floor would be set in place containing conduits to permit electrical wiring and simple plumbing to run between the plastic floor and the steel base. This would permit potable water and sanitary sewer service to the kitchen and bathroom areas of the container. Fire retardant insulated walls and ceilings would then be installed, again with conduits for electrical service for installed lighting fixtures illuminated by energy-efficient fluorescent lighting. Specially designed kitchens and toilet/shower/sink kits would be installed.
Steel conducts heat very well; containers used for human occupancy in an environment with extreme temperature variations will normally have to be better insulated than most brick, block or wood structures. An Australian designer has found a solution to placing steel shipping containers in hot climates.[20] Not only is insulated material applied to the walls and ceiling of the containers; but a large UV resistant fabric tent-fly is placed over the entire container by the use of poles at a distance from each corner. The fabric of the tent-fly is held in place by line. The fly has enough clearance from the roof of the container to permit the flow of air over the roof of the container. The use of the shade tent-fly over the container effectively maintains habitable temperatures during the day. The design of the shade tent-flys must be such that the tent-flys can be readily removed and stored by residents when high winds are predicted.
All containers used within the villages would be placed on concrete slabs and fastened with steel fasteners strong enough to withstand expected hurricane winds and to maintain the structure on the slab during seismic events such as the earthquake which destroyed Port-au-Prince on 12 January 2010. Container houses need to be placed on slabs, rather than on steel legs recommended in some areas for container housing, because wind cannot be permitted to flow beneath the container. Any open space beneath the container housing would create the danger of high winds lifting and moving the container, thus negating the container housing as shelter from hurricane winds.
After foreign craftsmen certify that local labor is competent to lay concrete, local workers would be responsible for constructing the slabs. Construction of the housing slab would require excavation of the slab site, laying steel rebar, placement of water lines, sewer lines and electrical conduits in the slab, pouring of concrete and placement of stainless steel tie-bars along the sides of the slab to hold the container in place.
During fabrication the interior of each container house would be built based upon the family size; or, if for non-residential use, then for the intended purpose. Built-in furniture, a simple kitchen kit and toilet/shower/sink kit would be installed. One can envision from entry at the screen doors, with hurricane shutters, one would be led to an interior designed for functionality. A series of interior spaces would be articulated along the long axis at the container’s edge. Subtle plan shifts, depending on family size, determined by the furniture, (i.e. number of beds and size of dining space) would define different qualities of space. The toilet/shower/sink and kitchen would be housed in the thickened walls that run perpendicular to the axis. The toilet/shower/sink would be provided privacy by curtains or wooden partitions. In order to be effective for habitation of the Haitian population, good architectural design of the container housing must address the Haitian culture in design and ideals.
Various national and international organizations are searching for stable, vacant sites within the Port-au-Prince area. After site selection is made for the placement of the shipping container house village a site design must be developed by landscape architects/urban planners which would maximize the use of the terrain, existing roads and infrastructure. To be economical the construction of each container house village would need to contain at least one thousand containers for housing. Groups of containers specially fabricated for use as shops, schools, food distribution, light industrial factories, churches, police stations, fire stations and community facilities would be included in each container housing village. All of the standard land uses within a Haitian community could be made from shipping containers attached by welding, to make as many square meters of space needed for each type of use based upon urban studies of Haiti or lacking such studies then by standards set in other Caribbean countries.[21]
All container villages would be surrounded by security fencing. Limited access would be established to ensure the security of the inhabitants. Vehicular and pedestrian access would be guarded around the clock. The inhabitants of the village would have security identification to ensure that the criminal elements of the Haitian society would be kept at bay as much as possible from each container housing village.[22]
The needed infrastructure for each neighborhood could be put in place through the efforts of the various governments and NGOs providing aid to Haiti. Safe drinking water is the primary necessity for each housing unit. USAID, U. S. Army, U.S. Navy and specialists from other countries and NGOs all have experience in drilling wells and providing water treatment for potable water. This treated water would be distributed throughout each village by PVC piping. Local craftsmen would be trained by foreign craftsmen, such as those assigned to U.S. Navy Seabee, U.S. Army Engineer or Medical Service Corps sanitary engineer units[23] to drill wells, maintain community purification systems and lay pipe.
An important part of the infrastructure, and one that most Haitians lacked before the earthquake, is the provision of sanitary sewer. Again local craftsmen would be trained by foreign craftsmen to lay PVC sewer mains and laterals for residential and non-residential users. Gravity flow would take the wastewater to package treatment plants, or if warranted to a central sewer plant for Port-au-Prince. The installation of sewer facilities and potable water treatment plants is of the utmost importance for the long term health of the people of each community.
Electrical lines should be placed underground to ensure that during high wind events the electrical infrastructure for each village remains intact. Underground transmission lines from the generation site to the villages should be explored to ensure continuity during and after hurricanes or seismic events.
Roads would be laid down through each neighborhood providing roadside access to each dwelling or to each cluster of dwellings. Adequate road sub-bases could be made from concrete debris, after processing into gravel size pieces. Paving could be done either using bricks, paving block, concrete or asphalt, whichever material is most accessible in Port-au-Prince.[24]
A container can carry almost anything during its working life. Particular care should be taken that no spillages or contamination has occurred on the inside walls. The wooden decks of containers are treated to meet Australian government quarantine requirements. Most container floors are manufactured with decks treated with insecticides. Because so many people in Haiti re-use anything which is salvageable, the wood decks must be removed before shipment to Haiti and the waste wood disposed of safely. Each container should be thoroughly pressure washed and tested for contaminates before shipment.[25]
Some container vessels have cranes to load and unload containers at ports without container loading and unloading facilities on the docks. Port-au-Prince at one time had container loading facilities. The international community must make repairs to such facilities as a priority for Port-au-Prince. As a temporary solution until the port is ready to take container ships, the U. S. Navy and U. S. Army have assets to construct temporary docks and units to unload and move containers from ship to shore.[26]
A survey of trucks available to transport containers within Haiti between the port to the fabrication site and eventually to the container villages must be made. If logisticians find there are an insufficient number of tractor-trailers suitable to handle the size of international shipping containers for use as housing, the international community must supply the needed number of trucks for the efficient unloading of containers in order to transport the containers to fabrication sites and eventually to the villages.[27]
With gasoline stations running again within Port-au-Prince, the problem of traffic congestion has become an acute problem as debris blocked roads and heavy traffic make it difficult to navigate the open roads. In order for efficient delivery of containers to both fabrication sites and villages, military or international civilian police units should be used to restrict traffic on routes while being used for transporting containers from port facilities, to the fabrication site(s) and finally to the village sites.[28] The repair of roads from the port facilities, to fabricating sites and the village sites must be given priority for engineers. Local labor can clear debris. However, engineering equipment is needed to repair those routes to accommodate the heavy trucks transporting containers. Road repair and policing will also assist in transporting food and goods to established distribution centers.
At the Port, the fabrication site and the village site, security must be maintained. As Haitian police are stretched thin, it would be incumbent upon the international community through the use of military or civilian police to provide security for the containers, materials, fabrication sites and the villages. As mentioned above policing of transportation routes for the container trucks would also be needed.
The international community must decide while it is providing aid to the nation of Haiti, whether or not it intends to place a band aid on a dying patient; or, build a sustainable country that can function on its own, maintain internal security, grow its own food and manufacture competitive goods for the world market.
Some international organizations believe that the homeless of Haiti can be a housed temporarily in tents. It would be improbable for tents to survive hurricane or gale force winds. Last year Port-au-Prince was hit by four hurricanes which did extensive damage throughout the country because of heavy wind, steady rains and flash floods. Fabric tents deteriorate over time due to UV radiation from the sun. Building a sustainable country by housing people in tents may be a waste of money. Money should go for a self-reliant and sustainable Haitian society, of which sustainable housing is the first building block.
The recommendations of this paper calls for the international community, especially the United States and United Nations, take the position that permanent or semi-permanent housing through the use of international shipping containers, refurbished for residential use and placed in secure villages with the appropriate infrastructure for an urban village is the answer to temporary and semi-permanent housing. These container housing villages would not only protect people from high winds and heavy rains but could also lead to a rebirth of neighborhoods within the cities of Haiti.
The international community must insist that the national government of Haiti adopt building codes modeled on those of south Florida to address wind loads created by hurricanes. Portions of the Haitian building code should be taken from the California building codes dealing with construction in seismic affected areas. Money from the United States through the resources of USAID could be used to pay for the development of a Haitian building code. After the code is prepared and adopted, craftsmen must be trained as building inspectors. Many of the people trained in the preparation of the container residences might prove to be good candidates for such training as building inspectors.
The time is now for the United States, as the largest donor of aid to Haiti to take the lead to ensure that suitable, hurricane and semi-permanent housing is provided to the people of Haiti. The American Government, through USAID and Southern Command, should propose the use of international shipping containers as one solution to the housing crisis following the 12 January 2010 earthquake. The people of Haiti cannot wait. The people of the United States will not look kindly on any government or agency which permits the lessons of the post-Katrina fiasco to go unheeded.
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