Flood Fatalities in Australia, 1788-1996

Coates, Lucinda

doi:10.1080/00049189993657

Cited by 148 publications

(151 citation statements)

References 9 publications

(8 reference statements)

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“…In the case of Gundagai, floods in the 1840s led to residents requesting the relocation of the town, which was rejected by the New South Wales Governor [11]. That town was moved following an 1852 flood which killed 89 people, the largest number of casualties caused by a flood in Australia [12]. In Clermont, buildings that were not destroyed by the 1916 flood were physically moved to their new location [13].…”

Section: Flood Risk Management In Australiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Flood Risk in Australia: Whose Responsibility Is It, Anyway?

Box

Thomalla

Honert

2013

Water

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This paper presents research into four key stakeholders in flood risk management in Australia: local councils, the insurance industry, the State Emergency Service (SES), and local residents; examining the perception of their own roles and responsibilities, and those of the other stakeholders. Key informant interviews were conducted in four locations-Brisbane and Emerald, in Queensland, Dora Creek, in New South Wales, and Benalla, in Victoria. We find that understanding of the roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder varied considerably between research participants. Insurance representatives felt their concerns about increasing flood risk costs were unheeded until the 2010-2011 floods made them the "canary in the coal mine". Councils felt they had limited options for reducing flood risk. SES representatives felt they were too relied upon for event response, with requests for assistance outstripping their capacity to assist, and many residents were uncertain how to prepare for flood, relying on emergency agencies and the local council to protect them. Key lessons for flood risk management in Australia are (a) an urgent need for all stakeholders to better understand each others' roles and responsibilities; and (b) residents must take greater responsibility for their own personal protection. Only then can the vision of shared responsibility presented by the 2009 National Strategy for Disaster Resilience be achieved.

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Section: Flood Risk Management In Australiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Flood Risk in Australia: Whose Responsibility Is It, Anyway?

Box

Thomalla

Honert

2013

Water

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“…In literature, it is possible to find papers focusing separately on the circumstances in which these two kinds of phenomena affect people in the short term, killing or injuring them. Numerous studies concerning victims caused by floods (Coates, 1999;Jonkman, 2005;Jonkman et al, 2009), and focusing on vulnerability features related to age and/or gender (Vinet et al, 2012), also highlight the road as the most dangerous place to suffer flood damage (Ruin et al, 2007;Petrucci and Pasqua, 2012;Diakakis and Deligiannakis, 2013). On the contrary, papers investigating landslide effects on people are less nu-merous than those concerning floods effects (Catapano et al, 2001;Salvati et al, 2010;Petley, 2012;Sepúlveda and Petley, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of damaging hydrogeological events on people throughout 15 years in a Mediterranean region

2017

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Abstract. Damaging Hydrogeological Events (DHE) are defined as rainy periods during which landslides and floods can damage people. The paper investigated the effects of DHE on people living in Calabria (southern Italy) in the period 2000-2014, using data coming from the systematic survey of regional newspapers. Data about "fatalities", people "injured" and people "involved" (not killed neither hurt) were stored in the database named PEOPLE, made of three sections: (1) event identification, (2) victim-event interaction, (3) effects on people. The outcomes highlighted vulnerability factors related to gender and age: males were killed more frequently (75 %) than females (25 %), and fatalities were older (average age 49 years) than injured (40.1 years) and involved people (40.5 years). The average ages of females killed (67.5 years), injured (43.4 years) and involved (44.6 years) were higher than the same values assessed for males, maybe indicating that younger females tended to be more cautious than same-age males, while older females showed an intrinsic greater vulnerability. Involved people were younger than injured people and fatalities, perhaps because younger people show greater promptness to react in dangerous situations. In the study region, floods caused more fatalities (67.9 %), injured (55 %) and involved people (55.3 %) than landslides. Fatalities and injuries mainly occurred outdoor, especially along roads, and the most dangerous dynamic was to be dragged by flood, causing the majority of fatalities (71.4 %). These outcomes can be used to strengthen the strategies aimed at saving people, and to customise warning campaigns according to the local risk features and people's behaviour. The results can improve the understanding of the potential impacts of geo-hydrological hazards on the population and can increase risk awareness among both administrators and citizens.

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“…Some studies investigate loss of life patterns on global scale (Berz et al 2001;Jonkman 2005) or discuss loss of life in the context of general public health impacts (Hajat et al 2003;Ahern et al 2005). Other studies focus on the analysis of the causes and circumstances of individual flood disaster deaths for specific regions or events (Coates 1999;Jonkman and Kelman 2005). This article focuses on methods for the estimation of loss of life due to flooding.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methods for the estimation of loss of life due to floods: a literature review and a proposal for a new method

2008

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This article deals with methods for the estimation of loss of life due to flooding. These methods can be used to assess the flood risks and to identify mitigation strategies. The first part of this article contains a comprehensive review of existing literature. Methods have been developed for different types of floods in different regions. In general these methods relate the loss of life in the flooded area to the flood characteristics and the possibilities for evacuation and shelter. An evaluation showed that many of the existing methods do not take into account all of the most relevant determinants of loss of life and that they are often to a limited extent based on empirical data of historical flood events. In the second part of the article, a new method is proposed for the estimation of loss of life caused by the flooding of low-lying areas protected by flood defences. An estimate of the loss of life due to a flood event can be given based on: (1) information regarding the flood characteristics, (2) an analysis of the exposed population and evacuation, and (3) an estimate of the mortality amongst the exposed population. By analysing empirical information from historical floods, new mortality functions have been developed. These relate the mortality amongst the exposed population to the flood characteristics. Comparison of the outcomes of the proposed method with information from historical flood events shows that it gives an accurate approximation of the number of observed fatalities during these events. The method is applied to assess the consequences for a largescale flooding of the area of South Holland, in the Netherlands. It is estimated that the analysed coastal flood scenario can lead to approximately 3,200 fatalities in this area.

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Flood Fatalities in Australia, 1788-1996

Cited by 148 publications

References 9 publications

Flood Risk in Australia: Whose Responsibility Is It, Anyway?

Flood Risk in Australia: Whose Responsibility Is It, Anyway?

Effects of damaging hydrogeological events on people throughout 15 years in a Mediterranean region

Methods for the estimation of loss of life due to floods: a literature review and a proposal for a new method

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