Companies in many of our hometowns are continuing to help Haiti rebuild more than two years after an earthquake killed hundreds of thousands of people and left thousands more homeless.
This week the first energy-efficient disaster relief home arrived in Haiti.
It's technology that energy smart companies in Southern Virginia and the University of Virginia's Initiative reCOVER are now using in disaster relief houses.
"We sent it to one of the worst areas we could for testing, and that's Haiti. This house now is designed to withstand earthquakes and a high winds," said Jimmy Farlow, president of SIPS of America.
By using styrofoam as insulation, you can save up to 70 percent on your energy bill.
"We're increasing the square footage of a building for minimal cost and it's all inside the thermal envelope," Farlow said.
It's called the Breathe House, a project not only giving a home to people who lost theirs, but using green and modern technology.
Each 512 square foot relief home costs $15,000 to $40,000.
Farlow's company normally builds one house for homeowners in Southern Virginia every month. With this new project, he expects to build 25 houses a week.
That means possibly dozens of jobs coming to Southern Virginia.
"That will end up creating somewhere from 35 to 70 jobs by itself. And as we're able to market more and reach more people with our buildings yes, we look to see this business grow rapidly and good size."
The team plans to send disaster-relief homes to Japan and partner with the federal government's disaster agency if the home now in Haiti passes its tests.
