Hurricanes - How to Protect Against the Damage
Disclaimer: First off, this is not a duplicate of this question. That question deals with stopping the hurricane, or preventing it from ever forming in the first place. It was discovered that wasn't such a bright idea, so I'm asking this question. This question deals with simply preventing any damage to cities while the hurricane is present.
Scenario: From my research, there are hurricanes nearly every year, moving up (or West) from the Gulf of Mexico. Every time a hurricane hits or even comes close to buildings, it inflicts a lot of property damage from the winds and flooding. Not to mention the potential for loss of life if the hurricane is bad.
We've determined that we need the hurricanes. @Mark said: "A hurricane is nature's way of moving heat from the equator to the poles. If you stop hurricanes, that heat is going to build up, and is going to find an outlet somewhere. Do you really want to risk being in the path of that "somewhere", when we find out what it is?" (comment on the above linked question)
Question: So if we need the hurricane, and if it causes a ton of damage, what can we do to prevent or at least significantly lessen that damage? How can we protect ourselves and our cities?
Details: I'm assuming that if we had a feasible way to do this, we would have done so by now. So I'll allow for a small amount of near-future technology that we don't quite have yet. Try to keep as close to reality as possible though.
1 answer
My first thought for protecting against hurricanes (or any kind of flooding/wind storm) is something that you can erect between the storm and the city. Obviously in the case of large cities that's going to take a lot of material, and that material isn't going to be cheap. So we need to aim for something that is strong enough to withstand the wind (and any objects picked up by it), watertight to prevent flooding, durable enough to be used at least several times (brings the cost down), and is not outrageously expensive or difficult to manufacture.
My idea: Giant Plastic Cones. I know, it sounds pretty stupid. Maybe it is. I haven't tested it out, obviously. But here's how I see it working:
- Strength. It's been demonstrated that plastic can be manufactured to have extraordinary strength. I'd imagine a few layers of super strong plastic would get the job done.
- Watertight. Plastic is obviously watertight (water bottles come to mind), so we're fine here.
- Durable. Unless my research has misled me, plastic is one of the most durable substances we have around. Maybe not against a fire, but against wind and water I'd imagine it could take several large hits. Flying objects might be a bit of an issue, so the cones should be constructed with individual panels, which can be replaced by themselves, rather than replacing the whole unit.
- Cheap. I'm no authority on the cost of manufacturing plastic, but I can't recall ever hearing about it one way or the other, so I would assume that it isn't among our more highly valued possessions.
The plastic cones are stored in large warehouses. When a hurricane approaches, the panels are affixed to tracks dug into the pavement around cities (similar to streetcar tracks - no impact on traffic). The panels cover the entire city, going over it as well as around it. This will keep the high winds out, as well as any objects that are flung high enough to get over the walls (roofs may not be practical, in which case you would just have walls). Some sort of ventilation system will be needed to prevent overheating if you have a roof.
Is this a feasible option?
(Also, should I put this here, or in my OP?)
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