This is another photo of our condo building under construction in December 2005. This provides a glimpse of construction materials and methods in Costa Rica.Note that the walls are made of masonry reinforced with rebar. That provides strength in case there is an earthquake. Even interior walls are masonry. The walls are covered with a very smooth plaster-like cement on the inside.
You can see several construction workers in the warm December sun. Many construction workers in Costa Rica are immigrants or migrant construction labor from Nicaragua.
This photo also shows differences in construction practices between the developing world and the USA. My wife and I have knowledge of the standards of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. In the USA, an OSHA inspector would issue citations for the lack of guard rails on the scaffolding and the lack of caps on the rebar, among other things. Nevertheless, construction methods on Costa Rica are better than you would see in other Latin American countries. This construction site had a large crane to deliver materials. The quality of construction evident in this photo is good.
This week on our travel photo site, Viva la Voyage, we happen to be showing photos from Costa Rica, which of course is what I show in this site every day. Some of our favorite Costa Rica photos are featured this week.
It's always fascinating to me to see the development from "ugly duckling" construction to finished product, which invariably is quite beautiful. Yes, Osha would have a field day with citations if they had to visit construction sites in other countries. After the chaos in Haiti, it is GOOD that it is constructed with earthquakes in mind. Mexico, too, lacks the standards required of OSHA, but the sites seem quite similar to what you describe here.
ReplyDeleteLooking at this photo, I wouldn't have even thought about the construction practices, but now I see what you mean.
ReplyDeleteHopefully the buildings in Costa Rica will not have to be tested in an earthquake.
ReplyDeleteIt is fascinating seeing the differnces in construction technigues and methods. Your condo appears to be as solid as one would find. Aside from the safety issues, isn't it amazing when you travel to see how rough and crude many counties are with block and cement foundations and walls. A bit scary. And trim and finish isn't quite what we would expect here are approve.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you're pretty safe considering your storm-prone location.