WHAT a tragedy to see these houses burn to the ground due to ember storms. Constantly we see images of home owners emptying litres of water into roofing gutters which are more than likely filled with dry leaves from the nearby drought-stressed trees.
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We need to redesign houses so that they do not have leaf-gathering valleys and gutters.
I'm suggesting igloo-style arched roofs rather than the conventional hip and valley roof.
Surely it would be better to allow roofing water to simply drop into spoon drains below and then direct the precious water into underground storage tanks.
Above ground water tanks often melt when exposed to ferocious fires, whereas underground tanks would survive.
Here is the challenge for engineers and architects to step up to the plate and design houses that have a reasonable chance of survival in fire-prone areas.
There are many aspects of building construction that need to be reviewed so that the risk of fire can be reduced.
The Building Code of Australia is due for a rebuild.
