Estimation of losses and damages caused by flash floods in the commercial area of Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract

Flash flood is the most devastating natural disaster experienced in Malaysia. It can be defined as any high water flow caused by various factors such as rainstorms, slow water run-off, and broken dams. In Malaysia, the most typical and disruptive hydro-meteorological occurrences are flash floods, which are mostly faced by Malaysian cities including Kuala Lumpur and Kajang. However, flash floods may occur at any time of the year rather than during monsoon and can result in devastating losses and damages. Thus, several mitigation steps and estimations are warranted to handle flash floods, especially at the city level. Hence, this paper estimated the amount of direct loss and damage due to flash floods on the basis of the commercial area of Kajang City. This empirical study used primary data collected through direct face-to-face semi-structured interviews with 41 businessmen in the study area. The average estimated overall losses and damages per shop was RM4,510.07 due to flash floods at Kajang City in 2014, wherein the significant contribution comes from the economic side. This study's findings can serve as the baseline information for future studies on flash flood losses and damages. Furthermore, the present study suggests extensive institutional research for estimating losses and damages due to flash floods at the country level as an adaptation strategy.

The Vulnerability Assessment of Flash Floods Disaster in the Upper Cisadane Watershed

“…This is also related to food security in the study area; if agricultural land is damaged by flash floods, economic stability and food security will be disrupted. In addition to disrupting the economy, flash flood disasters also disrupt the movement of residents in their daily activities [28]. The duration of flash flood disasters also affects damage to agricultural land [29].…”

“…Settlement location affects the level of damage, as well as access and movement of people when a disaster occurs. Settlements in rural areas in mountains are separated and scattered, which can lead to difficulties accessing residents and rescue teams [28,30]. The effects of flash flood disasters not only affect the damage to each house but also the surrounding environment and infrastructure in one village.…”

An Approach for Irrigation Network Rehabilitation Priority Based on Hybrid Ahp-Topsis, Waspas, Moora

“…denotes the cost criteria (13) 3. Calculate the relative preference based on the SAW method ( 𝑄𝑄 𝑖𝑖 (1) ) and the relative importance of the WP method ( 𝑄𝑄 𝑖𝑖 (2) ), is calculated as Eq. ( 14)-( 15):…”

“…Flash floods with high peak discharges and sudden arrivals cause damage to irrigation canal structures, and weir breaks [1]. The impact of this damage is decreasing in the function of the irrigation network system.…”