Sep 27th, 2008 · This week, the Curry Stone Design Prize was awarded to a South African architecture firm that figured out how to make a cheap house with a timber frame and a whole lot of sandbags. The houses are energy efficient and easily assembled, and could replace more hazardous structures in the shantytowns around Cape Town. South African architect Luyanda Mphahlwa talks with Scott Simon about his prize-winning design.
Jul 2nd, 2008 · Kids love theme restaurants. Chuck E. Cheese, Rainforest Cafe — and, in a suburb of Beirut, the new fast-food restaurant Buns and Guns. You can order the Kalashnikov sandwich or a "Terrorist Meal." Owner Ali Hammoud said, "I could have put toys in place of the sandbags and teddy bears instead of guns. But it was just an idea."
Jun 19th, 2008 · Volunteers in Illinois and Missouri joined sandbagging operations in the frantic effort to contain the Mississippi River as forecasters predicted near-record crests from Quincy, Ill., to Winfield, Mo. President Bush was visiting Iowa, where the water is receding but families and businesses are knee-deep in the disheartening aftermath.
Jun 16th, 2008 · The Illinois Army National Guard has been called up to help with sandbagging duties in Quincy, Ill. Quincy Mayor John Spring sets the scene.
Jun 16th, 2008 · Flooding in the Hawkeye State continues to wreak havoc. At the University of Iowa in Iowa City, 16 buildings are underwater. Other buildings belonging to the land-grant university are locked down, blocked by sandbags or without power.
Jun 15th, 2008 · Cedar Rapids, Iowa, officials warn the city's fresh water supply may run out within three to four days. In Iowa City, more than 200 homes have been evacuated because the Iowa River is still rising. At the University of Iowa, people who were filling thousands of sandbags abandoned their work when the flood was considered too dangerous.
Jun 14th, 2008 · At least 20,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Saturday. Hundreds of blocks are submerged, threatening the city's drinking supply. Emergency officials expect it will be at least four days before water levels are low enough to get crews in pump out the excess water. About 200 homes are expected to have extensive damage due to the levee breach. Many of the same homes were also extensively damaged when the same levee broke in 1993. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Weber talkes to volunteers of all ages, as they filled sandbags.
Jun 30th, 2005 · A popular Beirut bar draws its theme from the Lebanese Civil War, which began in 1975 and tore apart what many called the "Paris on the Mediterranean." Bullet holes and signs warning of land mines decorate the walls, and drinkers sit on sandbag chairs. Some patrons hail the bar as evidence of progress in Lebanon, but admit it brings up difficult memories for some city residents.