A house in Tolovana Park may be the only house still standing on the ocean’s edge when the big tsunami hits the north coast, but it will stand as a testament to what can be done to make homes “tsunami-proof.”

Designed by Longview, Wash. architect Gary Slyter, the house is built mostly of steel and concrete. But what makes the 4,100-square-foot house truly “tsunami proof” is its height: It stands 2 feet, 6 inches off the ground on top of 46 steel pilings. The space allows water to flow under the house, and the piers holding the steel pilings are concrete. When a wave hits, “the house won’t go anywhere,” Slyter said.

It also contains several steel columns 24 feet high. Each column is aligned with the others so water flowing through the house will not be obstructed. The concrete exterior and interior walls are faced with concrete that looks like stone.

In the middle of the house is a concrete stone wall shaped like a surfboard, which will allow water to flow around it. The wall, The house stands 2 feet 6 inches off the ground to allow water to flow under it. It has 46 steel pilings; the piers are made of concrete.

NANCY MCCARTHY FOR AT HOMEcalled a “feather” wall because of its shape, separates the interior rooms.

The beams in the house are steel encased in a wood facing. Overall, the construction is similar to a bridge, Slyter says.

In addition to its height and materials of steel and concrete, the house has other tsunami-proof features. Accordion doors in the beach-front living room will allow water to push them back as it flows through the house, causing little resistance. The house’s windows and front porch stairs will break away, preventing damage to the house.

The garage, which sits to the east of the house, has both a front and back door, that, when opened, will allow water to go through without causing the garage to collapse.

The extra construction added to an already spendy price tag, noted Slyter, who designed the house for a client from California. The lot was $850,000, and the five-bedroom house cost at least $900,000. Of that, the foundation alone was about $115,000, Slyter said.

He built the house according to codes specified for buildings in tsunami zones. The latest studies conducted by the state Department of Geology and Mineral Accordion windows in the tsunami house are designed to allow water to go through without resistance. The theory behind the construction is to let the water go through and under the building so the house will remain standing.

NANCY MCCARTHY FOR AT HOMEIndustries indicate that Tolovana Park could be inundated with tsunamis reaching 90 feet high, due to a land depression recently discovered offshore.

“The whole town will be destroyed, and this will be the only house standing,” Slyter said. “What good is that? But if everybody did it, there wouldn’t be the debris, which kills people.”

Inside, the rooms look like those in any house. A greatroom contains a kitchen, dining area and living room. Light streams through a skylight running the full 70-foot length of the house. A master bedroom is on the main floor, and four bedrooms and a media room are downstairs.

While much concrete and steel may make homes tsunami-proof, Slyter believes there may be a simpler solution for saving lives.

“I was designing a tsunami house in Long Beach, and I asked the client, ‘Why don’t we just save your life?'” Slyter said. He then suggested running a large, weighted pole through the house that the homeowner could climb to get out of the water’s way.

“It’s a creative way to save a life,” Slyter said. “Do you know how many people were saved by climbing trees when the tsunami hit Southeast Asia?”

“It seems ridiculous,” Slyter added, “But not in terms of life and death. All you have to do is get out of the way of the flood.”