Typhoon Hagupit / Ruby - (Weakened to Storm 8th Dec 2014)

I have often wondered why people there don't have underground shelters built on higher ground if possible to stop the sea getting in?

Reasonable idea, maybe down to lack of structural engineering knowledge to build something underground

How hard can that be, Stu?
The wind can rush over the top......

if only this was a more viable solution

http://www.concretecanvas.com/concrete-canvas-shelters/what-is-it/

I seen a company on the local news demonstrating this recently. Good idea

I was thinking the likely senerio of it collapsing

They look really good, wonder how much they are?

They would be quite costly to buy and transport and electricity to inflate them could be a problem also.

Filipinos seem to be very handy building things.
Surely a hole in the ground and a secured roof could be used for typhoons in the provinces.

And how do you keep the water out - before you answer that, I should explain that up to 500 mm/hour or almost 20 inches of rain could fall during a typhoon.

Some form of tanking of the space would obviously be needed along with a sump hole and pump. Ensuring its well above the water table would help as well. Don't know what anking products there are out in the Phils?

That's why I mentioned on higher ground, that for the sea surge and surely they could have a run-off top that would be at an angle so the water would not get in?

I keep thinking off my wife's island where most people don't have electricity so it would have to be done on the cheap without having to rely on something that would probably fail anyway?

This would be a common problem, I think the only way would be solar panels and a bank of batteries. Or of course a generator

So everybody in the Philippines should live underground?

Only those that live in wood / bamboo huts that can't shelter in a concrete building

If we had to go and live in the province in flimsy abodes, I would definitely sort out a hole big enough for my family.
How many lives could have been saved if these were in place?