Build Change Blog

Build Change Team: Clément Davy, Junior Macié, Gaspard Pierristal, Herode Nazaire

The Build Change reconnaissance team for the South and Grande Anse departments is composed of 4 engineers and our driver Ken. Junior is a team leader who has extensive knowledge in retrofit and new construction in confined masonry. Gaspard is the program manager for our current retrofit and reconstruction program in Port au Prince. Herode is a trainer from the block department. Clement has been a project engineer for 2.5 years in Haiti working on house and school retrofits.

We left early Tuesday morning heading to Jeremie in the southwest peninsula of Haiti. Hurricane Matthew hit the coast on October 4^th in Les Anglais (see map below) and crossed the peninsula from south to north with maximum sustained winds at 145 mph (230 km/h) and maximum wind gusts at 165 mph (270 km/h). (Source: USAID)

Map of Hurricane Matthew Path through Haiti (courtesy of MapAction)

We drove from east to west so we were able to see the evolution of the effect of the hurricane. In Miragoane numerous trees had broken branches, but the vast majority of roofs withstood the winds. In Saint Louis du Sud we started to see broken trees and houses with severe roof damage. Some electrical poles fell, cutting off electricity to the city of Les Cayes. We passed through the city of Cavaillon which was flooded last weekend. After Les Cayes, we took the road toward the north and the mountains. It was striking to see how the landscape had changed. This region is known for being one of the greenest areas in Haiti, however now all the trees have lost their leaves and most of them have fallen branches or are completely broken.

We passed nearby the city of Camp Perrin which was heavily hit by the hurricane. The city used to be hidden by the trees from the road (see picture). As we continued toward the north we saw that the type of building was changing. There are less and less confined masonry houses and more wood frame with stone masonry infill or mud houses. The houses with heavy roofs do not show severe damage, however the hipped roofs are heavily damaged. One detail that’s worth noting is that some houses with straw roofs are not heavily damaged – only parts of the cover are gone, but the structure is preserved.

Straw roofs, mostly intact.

We drove around the shore toward Jeremie where many houses, more than 80%, are heavily damaged. Many roofs are gone and the walls show cracks or are completely collapsed. Most of these houses were built with wooden roofs and a wood structure with infill masonry or wood panel.

Damaged trees and houses.

We arrived in Jeremie at midday and we met the general secretary of the mayor’s office of Jeremie, Antoine Dimanche, to introduce Build Change and describe our evaluation work. M. Dimanche proposed that we visit and evaluate the Vocational School of Jeremie, where the roof was blown away by the hurricane. We met Robert Jean Louibert, one of the professors and deputy director at the school. He explained that the school was training 400 students in different vocational skills such as construction, metal work, electricity, hair dressing, and wood work before the hurricane. Now the courses have been suspended, and some parts the building are being used instead to accommodate 104 families who lost their houses. The structure of the school is safe, but the covering of the roof (comprised of metal or wood truss in different sections) is completely damaged.

Families staying in the school in Jeremie after their houses were destroyed

We spoke with Rose Darlene who lost her house in the hurricane and is now staying in the school. She is selling small food items to make a little money and begin to recover from the storm. M. Louibert told us that he would like to reopen the school as early as November, even though the challenges of recovery seem extensive.

We have also completed an assessment of the police station and fire station. The fire station has no damage, but a portion of the roof at the police station was constructed from wood truss and is completely damage.

In addition, we assessed the houses of OAS/Estrella next to the office of MTPTC. The houses are built from confined and non-reinforced masonry. The structures are safe but the roofs are either completely damaged or gone.

By Matt Bussman

I’ll start with a broad idea (not my own) that I believe is generally true: all around the world, local architectural forms have grown organically, mostly out of rural communities, in response to distinct physical environments. A few examples: throughout the floodplains of Southeast Asia, homes rise on stilts to allow the monsoon floods to pass underneath. In the Alps, steeply pitched roofs shed heavy snows. And in the arid mountains of Peru, thick adobe walls keep homes cool during the day and warm at night. In the same way, Nepal’s buildings are largely a product of the land the Nepalese inhabit: in a country of hills and mountains, with few flat and open spaces, rather than sprawling across acres of land, rural homes go vertical: cooking and livestock on the ground floor, sleeping quarters on the second floor, and grain storage in the attic. As for materials: the roads that would ordinarily connect small towns to larger cities are frequently washed out by the rains; as a result, rural villagers (around 81% of Nepal’s population lives in rural areas) often forgo modern materials like steel and reinforced concrete in favor of mud and stone, which can be collected on site. The combination of these attributes – tall homes, with heavy walls built from weak and brittle materials – creates a vulnerability to earthquakes matched hardly anywhere else in the world.

In April 2015, the Mw7.8 Gorkha earthquake stuck between the two major cities in Nepal, Kathmandu and Pokhara. While both urban centers experienced some damage, it was really the rural communities – specifically, these homes made of mud and stone – that took the full force of the shaking. Driving through the countryside a few days ago, a year and a half after the event, the signs of damage are still very obvious, each one a dark cousin to the vulnerabilities above: collapsed walls, piles of broken earth and rock, and landslides across landscape as if it had been only a few weeks ago. It’s not terribly surprising that the recovery has been slow – few roads exist into these villages, and accessing them even to quantify the damage has been excruciating for the government and other organizations. Of the damage and loss estimates that exist, few even bother attaching a dollar value to these self-built homes. Aside from some support immediately after the event, the longer-term recovery of these rural areas has largely faded from the consciousness of the international community.

Village of Dhunkharka

And yet, the outlook for the villages is not entirely bleak. After the event, the Nepali government promised subsidies of around USD$2,000 for any homeowner whose house was severely damaged or collapsed in the earthquake. Just this week, the first installments (around $500) were disbursed to the first round of eligible homeowners, aiding homeowners and communities to hire builders to construct new homes. Although it may sound low, relative to Nepal’s GDP per capita ($732), the housing subsidy is quite substantial (by comparison, in 1989 after the Loma Prieta earthquake, FEMA offered loans – not grants – of $30,000 to homewoners, at a time when US GDP per capita was around $22,900). Still, the reality remains: to build a traditional mud and stone house – even without any additional earthquake-resistant features – costs $10,000 to $12,000. One in compliance with the Nepali code (the code allows unreinforced masonry homes) and the cost can rise to $15,000.

At the moment, the government’s official line is that the housing subsidy is given only for new home construction. Enter Build Change’s current project in Dhunkharka, a region about four hours southeast of Kathmandu. Here, Build Change engineers are working to demonstrate the technical viability of repairing and retrofitting existing homes that were damaged (but not collapsed) in the earthquake. So far, the results are promising – retrofitting an existing home, even with some repairs to damaged walls, costs significantly less than building a new code-based home (around $3,000 vs. $15,000), and construction is notably faster (around three weeks vs. two months), leading homeowners to have shelter more quickly. If the retrofit project were replicated at scale, it’s likely the total cost for each home could drop entirely within the subsidized amount from the government, if the government were to view repairs and retrofits as a feasible alternative to new construction. Right now, this is a big “if”.

Home repair and retrofit in progress in Dhunkharka

So, fingers crossed that the thoughtful engineering and construction Build Change is doing gains traction among local and national leaders. Whether this work is enabled by the Nepalese government may mean the difference between safe housing and no housing for hundreds and thousands of rural families affected by the earthquake.

By Megan Arnold

When I applied to the Impact Trek, one of the drivers of my desire to go was to see actual earthquake damage first hand. My experience with earthquake damage was numbers – how many buildings and casualties, how much loss in dollars. I’ve seen photos of damage – individual buildings, street blocks, aerial photos – but never quite connected with the reality of it all because I was so removed from it. I could look, sympathize, then move on with my day. However, being here in a remote village of Nepal, I see the scale of damage and it’s so much more than the metric of “177 buildings damaged”…

I stand in the villages of Eklephant and Bhimtar, taking pictures of what was someone’s home – their intimate interiors now exposed to the elements and this foreigner’s camera lens. This building may have housed generations of families, could even have been 4 generations all at once, and their livelihoods. With the sudden and terrifying shaking of earth, what once kept them safe came crumbling down.

The building’s inhabitants, both human and animal, were displaced. Some people lived out in the fields for over a week, wondering every time an aftershock rumbled through, if they would die. People set up shelters with whatever they had on hand or could salvage until the temporary shelters arrived.

Most people are now housed in other family homes or in temporary housing – half-domed structures with of light metal roofs resembling a tunnel, and tarp, wood, or stone walls. Their livestock are right outside, their harvests drying wherever they can find space. They are waiting for government aid to come in so they can start rebuilding, some cannot afford to rebuild even with the additional aid.

Here I am in their village, taking photos of their past lives and their current difficulties. I feel like even more of a foreigner than my blonde hair and blue eyes obviously indicate. I am a foreigner because I have never lost my home. I have never needed to salvage my belongings and lived in temporary shelter. I have never lost my livelihood, nor my food storage. I have never lived outdoors, fearing for my life each time the earth trembled. I have never been without clean water and sanitation. I have never worried where my next meal would come from. I have never lost a loved one under a pile of stone.

Yet, here I am, an observer. I see them going on with their lives and I see the homes that they lost. I listen to them share their experiences. I empathize, but that feels so meaningless considering the hardship they have faced. I want to help these people, and they’re just a fraction of all of the people in Nepal going through this tragedy. There are scores of villages across the region who are even more remote, and also completely flattened.

For me, this is where Build Change comes in. Their impact goes beyond the rebuilding 143 homes in this village. Their mission is to scale the rebuilding and retrofitting process across the country. They are demonstrating earthquake-safe building practices and training builders to retrofit. They built model homes that have diagrams even non-Nepali readers (myself included) can have some understanding of. They have completed retrofits and are working with the government to design more affordable new constructions. They are striving to address the unique living conditions of the villages in the reconstruction.

There is a lot of work ahead to rebuild these villages in Nepal and Build Change is in the thick of it. They are scoping out how to scale rebuilds and retrofits to the hundreds of thousands of people who need it. It has been an amazing experience to see their impact firsthand.

By Alastair Norris

We are now all completely submerged in Nepali time and the first four days have quickly slipped by providing in a huge mix of emotions. I completely echo the words of Christine and Matt on how much of a culture shock it was arriving in Kathmandu four days ago, but what once seemed so strange to us all now feels like the normal way of life.

As Christine mentioned in her blog, the five of us parted company yesterday, with Matt B. and I heading to Dhunkarka whilst Christine, Meghan, and Matt N. went to Sindupalchowk. After 3 hours of travelling (that felt more like riding an elephant than being in a jeep) we arrived at Build Change’s current retrofit houses in the region and were greeted by Kiran and Manoj, the respective site managers. At 25 and 27 they both have solid heads on their shoulders and are each leading a team of 6 workers from the village.The workers all want to learn how to retrofit these buildings so they can provide safer homes to more families in the community and it was very heartwarming to hear the pride they have in working for Build Change.

These houses were chosen for retrofitting by the local village council due to both the damage level sustained, enough to require retrofit but not enough for rebuilding, and the financial position for the family. They are typical buildings of the area consisting of 3 floors with approx 120m2 of floor area – the first for living, the second sleeping, and third for storage of crops. The retrofit includes a number of structural alterations, including new columns and beams to tie the walls and floors together – these can be either wood or concrete, through stones connecting the inner and outer leaves of the wall to ensure they do not separate in an earthquake, horizontal bracing within the floor to restrain the walls further and a ring beam at the top of the house to hold the walls together. The build time for these houses is 8 to 12 weeks, which is unbelievably fast given everything that they have to get done and means a lot of hours spent on site, even requiring them to work every weekend! Seeing these buildings has allowed us to identify a number of small projects where we may be able to help Build Change streamline their designs. These incorporate a number of structural alterations to maintain the high standard of retrofitting whilst reducing the amount of material used and thereby the cost. We intend to work on these further both during our time here in Nepal and when we return to RMS.

Now for the more social side of our time in Dhunkarka! We have met some truly wonderful people and have been amazed by the hospitality of everyone here. So often we have wandered into a local villager’s house to be met by smiles and the offering of food and tea… Back at home we would be phoning the police before they even crossed the threshold! The two Build Change site engineers have been brilliant in helping us explore the place, introducing us to the locals and initiating us in their local Nepali cuisine. Enjoying a beer and Mo Mo’s (a Nepalese food similar to a gyoza) with them in a tiny bar whilst swapping stories about our hobbies, Build Change and the earthquake, was a moment in time I will never forget.

Since arriving in Nepal my overall feeling is of surprise by the slow recovery process that has happened since the earthquake. However, with organisations like Build Change and the Nepali people joining forces, it feels like there is real progress being made. Given time, who knows what can be achieved – especially if you listen to Noll! I know that I speak for all the Trekkers in saying that we hope being here can help them along that journey.

By Christine Waters

Nothing could have prepared me for the initial culture shock that set in while touring the streets of Kathmandu on our first day in Nepal. It may have been because I just finished a 24+ hour trip to the other side of the world and had nothing more than a few hours of airplane sleep, but I was extremely overstimulated. Walking (and driving) in Manhattan is a breeze compared to Kathmandu. To put things into perspective, imagine a narrow roadway that looks like it was designed to be a one way (partially paved) road. Now, imagine that same road being used as a two lane street, full of cars, buses, and motorcycles and all the vehicles moving, turning, and stopping wherever and whenever they want. There are no stop signs or stop lights. Now, fill this same road with people. This is what driving/walking in Kathmandu is like. Cars pass each other whenever they want, most times playing chicken with oncoming traffic. In areas with sharp turns, vehicles honk their horn around every corner to alert oncoming traffic of their existence. However, even amid all this chaos, no one is yelling. No one is angry. Everyone is patient. It is unlike anything I have ever witnessed.

The people of Nepal have such an appreciation for everything around them. We had dinner with many of the people from Build Change on Monday night, which was a great opportunity to chat with them about everyday life in Nepal. There was one story that really stuck with me. I mentioned to one woman that I was surprised at how calm everyone is, especially in Kathmandu where it is so crowded. She instantly asked me about my meditation habits. I gave her a slightly embarrassed look as I admitted that I do not meditate. She then proceeded to tell me that mediation is very common in Nepal and it gives people full control of their own minds. She personally went on a 12-day meditation journey where she could not speak for 12 days and only had one meal per day. Each day, she woke up at 4 AM to begin her 2 hours on, 1 hour off meditation sequence. The first 3 days she spent focusing on breathing. The remainder of the time was spent focusing on senses. She explained how difficult the journey was but how much it taught her about herself and her mind. She did admit that she cried during the first 3 days and wanted to give up, but she stuck with it. There was so much passion in her voice as she described her journey. She believes that everyone should experience that journey at some point in their lives and challenged me to begin meditating, even if I started with 5 minutes per day.

After getting to know the people at Build Change, it was time to go into the field. Today (Tuesday) was our first day on site at the Build Change field locations. We were given a choice between two locations: Dhunkharka or Sindupalchowk. Matt Nielsen, Megan Arnold and I decided to go to Sindupalchowk. Matt Bussman and Alastair Norris chose Dhunkharka. Each location is approximately 2.5 hours from Kathmandu. Mansi from Build Change is joining us while we are in Sindupalchowk.

Sindupalchowk is naturally beautiful. It is surrounded by rolling hills, rivers, and lots of greenery. Driving through the winding roads, it is easy to get lost in the beauty that surrounds you.   Unfortunately, Sindupalchowk was one of the worst-affected districts as a result of the April 2015 earthquake. Many homes and schools were completely flattened. It is devastating. As we drove into town, we noticed a long line of people outside a building that overlooked a river. We came to find out that was a line of people asking for aid to repair/replace their damaged homes, even over a year after the earthquake.

When we arrived at the Build Change field office in Sindupalchowk, there were two Nepali men waiting inside. They were there to design their homes with Build Change, as they unfortunately lost theirs in the earthquake. We had a chance to interview them on camera (with Mansi from Build Change as our translator), which we hope to share with everyone after the trek. After the interview, Mansi told us how excited the men were to be interviewed by us and kept telling her they “were there are the right time”. Even though they were discussing something so heartbreaking as rebuilding their destroyed homes, they were so pleasant and positive. This is a common characteristic of the Nepali people.

We also had a chance to see a school that Build Change recently rebuilt. Everything but the roof of the school collapsed during the earthquake. At the same site is a second school with the same damage that they are planning to rebuild. While there, we met additional people from Build Change, as well as people Build Change is collaborating with from World Vision. We had a great round table discussion with the whole group while sitting inside the school. We learned that the Nepal building codes were adopted from India, which were adopted from the British. Because of this, a roof built to code needs to be designed to sustain 47 m/s wind speeds in Nepal. This makes new roofing extremely expensive. As part of my project with Build Change, they have asked me to help lead them in the right direction to prove that 47 m/s is too high for Nepal. If we could do this, this would help them reduce cost in building new roofs, making it more affordable for more people.

We ended the day at the field house, where we were served a delicious meal prepared by one of the caretakers of the field house, who they call “Didi”. Naturally, I can’t write a blog post without commenting on the food. I have been quite impressed by the Nepali cuisine.  It is delicious! The most common meal is a Nepali set. It is essentially a large gold plate with rice in the center, surrounded by smaller portions of vegetables and curries. It is always served with dal (almost like a lentil soup), which you mix with the rice. A full set ends with yogurt, which I’ve been told helps with digestion.  We have eaten this for most meals since we’ve been here, with each place having slightly different variations of the dal and side dishes. The drinks are even more amazing, especially the tea. There are many variations of tea to choose from, my favorite being the iced ginger lemon tea and the hot masala chai. I have yet to discover any chocolate, but will be sure to report back when I do!

Overall, my experience in Nepal so far has been wonderful. The people at Build Change have been so warm and welcoming. They are a wonderful group of people with a real passion for their work. They are so kind and are making us feel right at home.  I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and am very thankful to be sharing this adventure with this group of the trekkers. Even though the five of us have only been here for 3 days, I already feel like I’ve known them forever. I cannot wait to see what adventures the next few days bring!