When water-based catastrophes like Tsunami and floods occur, whole towns are destroyed by the incoming waves and fast flowing water. The best way to deal with the disaster is to get the area evacuated and erect portable shelters for them somewhere else. The problem is that the area affected by the disaster is too widespread and these settlements have to be made in dangerous areas where they could be affected by further storms and flash floods. This is where the floating survival shelter from Duckweed comes into play.
It is a concept that envisages floating shelters that can provide very basic needs to disaster-hit people like clean water and stable structures. Despite what you see, these floating tents appear to be the real deal as they continuously float on the surface at all times and can also dock on land with ease. They can have multiple occupants inside in case of a storm and still it would float on. There is also a stem provided underneath with a gas tank that helps the shelter stay upright stability at all times.
Another main problem of a flood/tsunami hit area is the availability of drinking water as road networks are cut off and it is difficult to distribute clean water throughout the area. The duckweed survival shelter provides purified water through a reverse osmosis process located near the base of the shelter. It is especially useful for coastal areas that are tsunami hit because there is lack of fresh water. The reverse osmosis method employed by the shelter gives very good quality water but the membrane gets damaged after some time. So, it is best suited for this disaster mitigation as rescue teams take some time to arrive at the scene and then they can take over the provision of water.
When in need, the shelter can be deployed within a matter of minutes with its high-pressure carbon dioxide chamber. Fresh air is provided from the top of the tent through a vent and it can be occupied by a number of people depending on the severity of the problem. In case of high waves and water velocities, a number of these tents can be hoisted together to increase stability and avoid toppling over under pressure. It has proved to be a useful tactic of ensuring people’s safety. The fluorescent markers present on the outside of the tent make it possible to be spotted from large distances in the event of a rescue operation.
Due to all these innovations and handy practices, the design won the Red Dot award which might hint that these shelters will form the basis of future flood mitigation and control.