Bushfire survivor builds fire-resistant tiny home that fits in ute tray
Architect Adriano Pupilli creates a flat-packed tiny home that meets the second-highest bushfire attack level after enduring the 2019 Black Summer bushfires.
Adriano Pupilli, an architect from the NSW south coast, has designed a tiny home called Manyana Casa that is built to withstand high-risk bushfire conditions. The design came about after Pupilli narrowly escaped the Black Summer bushfires in 2019. The Rural Fire Service (RFS) warns that relying solely on a home's design for protection is not sufficient.
In December 2019, Fiona Logge's family was evacuated from their holiday home in Manyana when the Currowan State Forest bushfire threatened their safety. Pupilli's wife, who was four months pregnant at the time, recalled the harrowing moment when her husband swam back to shore to save their home, despite being urged to leave by their community.
The experience left a significant mental toll on the family, motivating Pupilli to create Casa Manyana. The modular home is designed to be both fire-resistant, with a second-highest bushfire attack level standard of BAL 40, and affordable, with a price range of $75,000 to $120,000. It is built to fit in the tray of a ute, allowing for quick assembly and deployment as temporary emergency accommodation for disaster victims.
The project has been nominated for two 2026 Houses Awards. However, Pupilli emphasizes that while the home is fire-resistant, it is not a guarantee of safety during a catastrophic bushfire, and residents must not become complacent.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
