Reflections on Residential Rebuilding After the Victorian Black Saturday Bushfires

This document is a review of residential rebuilding after Black Saturday.  It has some data about rates of rebuilding but also covers the timing of support as people take different approaches and time in deciding whether and how they will rebuild. The post-bushfire experience pointed to a number of lessons including the importance of appropriate timing of post-disaster activities, careful targeting of financial assistance, need for developing better and lower cost interim housing options and pre-impact planning. Given the complex nature of rebuilding following a disaster, design professionals should focus not just on the final house, but also look at housing options that blur the distinction between temporary and permanent.