Evacuation decision making and risk perception: flooded rural communities in Pakistan

ABSTRACT

Evacuation is considered an essential aspect of flood risk reduction. It is important to identify the factors affecting the decision-making process during evacuation. The purpose of this study was to examine the factors that influence evacuation decision-making in flood-prone rural communities along the Indus River in Dera Ismail Khan. A total of 465 household surveys were conducted in high flood-risk areas along the river to gather data on evacuation characteristics and risk perception. Pearson's correlation technique was utilised to determine the relationship between flood risk perception indicators and the likelihood of evacuation, while a binary logistic regression test was implemented to identify the socio-economic factors that influence evacuation. The results of the study indicated that socio-economic conditions and risk perceptions can have a direct or indirect effect on evacuation decisions. It was found that those living in closer to the river tended to have a lower risk perception. However, respondents in the study reported experiencing high levels of fear in regard to floods. Age and proximity to hazards were identified as significant factors that impact willingness to evacuate. These findings suggest the need for urgent implementation of awareness campaigns in settlements located near the river in order to promote evacuation.

KEYWORDS:

• Climate change
• community resilience floods
• hazard proximity
• risk communication

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).