ORCID Profile
0000-0002-4939-5942
Current Organisation
University of Newcastle Australia
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Publisher: IEEE
Date: 2009
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2020
Publisher: IEEE
Date: 10-2008
DOI: 10.1109/CSA.2008.12
Publisher: AOSIS
Date: 24-11-2017
Abstract: Flood disasters continue to wreak havoc on the lives of millions of people worldwide, causing death and massive economic losses. In most African cities, residents and their assets are among the most vulnerable to flood risks in the world. The nature and scale of this urban risk are changing because of the dynamic patterns of land use, unplanned growth and impacts of climate change. Flood risk is the product of the flood hazards, the vulnerability and exposure of the people and their physical environment. In order to minimise flood disaster, there is an urgent need to understand, invest in flood disaster risk reduction for resilience and to enhance disaster preparedness for an effective response as articulated in the recent Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. This research utilises a new proposed flood vulnerability assessment framework for flood risk in a traditional community in the heart of Ibadan metropolis, in the context of their households’ exposure, susceptibility and coping capacity through a well-designed questionnaire survey. The study uses descriptive and inferential statistics techniques to provide a detailed understanding of the vulnerability profiles of the community and the levels of residents’ preparedness to mitigate the flood risk. The results of the statistical analysis show that there is a significant relationship between residents’ flood awareness and having previous flood experience, but there is no significant association between their awareness of risk and the level of preparedness for flooding. To minimise exposure and vulnerability to flood risk, we advocate effective adaptation policies to achieve disaster risk reduction and resilience on flood risk rather than focusing merely on reactive measures after disaster strikes.
Publisher: AOSIS
Date: 27-02-2017
Abstract: In the recent past, the frequency and gravity of large-scale flood disasters have increased globally, resulting in casualties, destruction of property and huge economic loss. The destructive flood disaster devastating Louisiana, USA, is a recent ex le. Despite the availability of advanced technological capabilities for dealing with floods in developed nations, flood disasters continue to become more r ant and disastrous. Developing countries in Africa such as Benin, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Sudan have recently experienced severe flooding, leaving a considerable number of human casualties and thousands displaced. In African cities, most vulnerable urban residents usually have lesser capacity and fewer resources to recover from the shocks of disaster as a result of the failure of governments to build human security for poor African residents. Many scholars have acknowledged the lack of appropriate vulnerability assessment frameworks and policies, questioning the efficiency and effectiveness of the tested models in Africa. The ability to accurately identify, measure and evaluate the various vulnerabilities of affected people and communities is a right step towards reducing disaster risk. This article aimed at developing a framework for assessing urban settlements’ vulnerability to flood risks in Africa. The framework is currently being tested to assess various dimensions of vulnerability drivers in three urban communities in Ibadan metropolis, the third largest city in Nigeria, focusing more on flood risk perceptions and behaviour of the risk bearers. It uses participatory and mixed method approaches to socially construct vulnerability of populations at risk. This model emanates from the evaluation of considerable relevant literature and an array of vulnerability assessment frameworks. It integrates some approaches that are applicable to African cities in a bid to create a versatile tool to assess, identify and mitigate the effects of flood disaster risk and reduce urban poor’s vulnerability to natural and human-induced hazards.
No related grants have been discovered for Helen Giggins.