Public perception and attitudes to disaster risks in a coastal metropolis of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

A B S T R A C TDisaster risk reduction is an increasingly important policy issue, especially in developing countries that suffer most of the global human and economic losses associated with disasters. Indeed, public awareness and attitudes can help in disaster risk reduction and management efforts toward reducing mortality and economic losses. In Saudi Arabia, many cities have been recently experiencing incidences of disasters, such as floods, disease epidemics, and sandstorms. However, studies on public perception of disaster risk in the country are few and nascent. Therefore, based on a questionnaire survey (n ¼ 683), this paper explores public perception and attitudes to disaster risks in Dammam, a coastal metropolis in Saudi Arabia. The findings indicate that although almost two-thirds (64.7%) of the participants are aware of disasters, and 81% are concerned about disaster risks, less than half (47.3%) believe that their settlements could be at risk. While 37% opine that disasters are caused by both natural factors and human activities, about half (54%) indicate that they can personally contribute to reducing disaster risks. Chi-square analysis indicates a significant positive relationship between place of residence and perception of disaster risks (χ2 (6) ¼ 56.18, p < 0.05), and between place of residence and concern about disaster risks (χ2 (12) ¼ 68.47, p < 0.05). The paper recommends raising public awareness and encouraging positive behaviors in reducing disaster risks in the study area and similar environments.

Flash Flood Impact Assessment in Jeddah City: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Approach

“…The AHP model applied in the current study focused on risk assessment of flash flood hazards in the city of Jeddah. The analysis first assesses the likely impacts of flash flood based on four categories of impacts (property loss, productivity loss, injuries, and death) derived from expert judgments, which vary from that of non-experts such as the public or public agency officials [10]. Like in the present study, Adam [31] reported that in Makassar city, property loss has the highest (35.7%) probability of occurrence during flash flood events, followed distantly by productivity loss (1.1%).…”

“…The findings are in line with what practically takes place as floods damage critical infrastructures such as roads and electricity, water, telecommunication and sewer networks, homes, schools, hospitals, businesses, and so on. In Dammam metropolis of Saudi Arabia, human death and injuries have been rated by the public as the highest impacts of natural hazards, followed by damage to infrastructure and buildings [10]. Globally, 126 cases of floods have been reported in 2017 that caused 3331 deaths and economic losses worth USD20.3 billion [1] due largely to rapid urbanization, unplanned urban growth, and climate change [2,3].…”

“…In Saudi Arabia, few studies have researched flood risk impacts and the efficacy of mitigation alternatives; however, more attention has been given to human-made disasters such as traffic accidents, fires, and stampedes [10]. In Riyadh city, Rahman et al [11] estimated the extent of the physical and social vulnerability of the residents to flash flooding.…”

“…The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number 11, target 5 sets by 2030 to "significantly reduce deaths and economic losses caused by disasters, including water-related disasters" [5].Saudi Arabia experiences a series of flood events annually in different parts of the country [7-9]. The country's three largest cities of Jeddah and Dammam located along the coast, and Riyadh encircled by valleys, do experience frequent occurrences of floods in the nation [10]. Due mainly to geographical (e.g., low elevation) and topographical features (mountains and inadequate slope), as well as other natural and anthropogenic factors, flash floods are the most recurring natural disasters in these areas [7,8,11,12].…”

Assessment of Socio-Environmental Vulnerability Due to Tropical Cyclones in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico

“…Assessing climate change vulnerability is a widely complex challenge and has become a multidisciplinary task since it affects several areas of activities and resources [19][20][21]. There have been several recent studies that aimed to assess the effects of climate change on coastal cities by using different approaches [22][23][24][25][26]. Moreover, there have been many studies to assess the perception and vulnerability due to hurricane impacts and effects [27][28][29][30].…”