Flood Warning for Vulnerable Groups:A review of the literature

Thrush, D, Burningham, K and Fielding, J (2005) Flood Warning for Vulnerable Groups:A review of the literature. Technical Report. Environment Agency.

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Summary

This document forms the first of a four part Final Report of research commissioned by the Environment Agency that examined vulnerability with regard to flood warning and flood event. It comprises a review of the body of published literature covering issues of social inequality in natural hazard research. After a brief overview of the background to the research study (Section 1.2), the literature review is presented in three sections. Section 2 explores the concept of vulnerability in relation to natural hazard events. The categories and characteristics of vulnerability found to be particularly at risk in terms of natural hazard and hazard warning are outlined in Section 3. Section 4 serves as a brief conclusion.

The aim of this report is to review and synthesise the existing literature on issues of social inequality in natural hazard research. Its purpose was three-fold: to identify what is currently known and what remains to be investigated; to provide a basis for the second stage of the research study by highlighting appropriate targets and discussion topics for interviews with key informant and victims of flood (see companion Report W5C-018/3); and to identify existing and potential social indicators for use in secondary data analysis (see companion Report W5C-018/2).Its intention was to be thorough and inclusive without the unnecessary rehearsal of material already well known to the Environment Agency.

The starting point for the literature review was a reading of reports provided by the Agency to ascertain the extent of research findings already known to them, widening the search to find any follow-up studies and research in progress. This was followed by a search of libraries, relevant websites and on-line electronic databases, including Ingenta, Bids and Web of Science.

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