Essay Example on Flood impact is one of the most significant disasters in the world

Tingsanchali 2012 described the urban flood disaster management Flood impact is one of the most significant disasters in the world More than half of global flood damages occur in Malaysia Causes of floods are due to natural factors such as heavy rainfall high floods and high tides etc and human factors such as blocking of channels or aggravation of drainage channels improper land use and deforestation in headwater regions Floods result in losses of life and damage properties Population increase results in more urbanization more impervious area and less infiltration and greater flood peak and runoff Problems become more critical due to more severe and frequent flooding likely caused by climate change socio economic damage population affected public outcry and limited funds Flood loss prevention and mitigation includes structural flood control measures such as construction of dams or river dikes and non structural measures such as flood forecasting and warning flood hazard and risk management public participation and institutional arrangement He described concepts policy plan and operation on integrated urban flood disaster and risk management In most developing countries flood disaster management activities are handled by government Participation of non governmental agencies and private sectors are very limited Activities are exercised rather independently without proper coordination or integration Flood disaster management in developing countries is mostly reactive responding to prevailing disaster situations emergency response and recovery 

Reactive response should be changed to proactive response to increase effectiveness of management and reduce losses of life and properties Proactive disaster management requires more participation from various governments non governmental and private agencies and public participation It involves more effort and time more budget equipment s facilities and human resources which leads to integration of flood disaster management for both long term and short term activities Strategic framework on integrated flood disaster management includes four cyclic steps namely 1 Preparedness before flood impact such as flood forecasting and warning 2 Post disaster program and participants 3 emergency responses during flood impact and 4 recovery and rehabilitation after flood impact Examples on urban flood disaster and risk management in Thailand are illustrated and discussed Conclusions and recommendations for further improvement are provided 2 2 Flood disaster threat in Malaysia Malaysia is a rustic very susceptible to flood dangers in general by using nature of its physical e g topography and drainage in addition to its human geography e g settlement and land use patterns The mixture of natural and human elements has produced one of a kind varieties of floods viz monsoon flash and tidal Chan 1998 Malaysians are historically a riverine people as historical early settlements grew on the banks of the most important rivers in the peninsula 

Coupled with natural elements along with heavy monsoon rainfall excessive convection rain storms terrible drainage and different neighborhood factors floods have become a common characteristic in the lives of a widespread range of Malaysians Monsoon and flash floods are the most excessive climate-related natural disasters in Malaysia with a flood susceptible area of approximately 29 000 km2 affecting greater than 4 82 million human beings 22 of the population and causing annual harm of USD 298 29 million Asian disaster reduction Centre 2005 Mitigation and Malaysia s flood disaster managements With annual heavy monsoon rains averaging more than 3000 mm and such a large flood-prone area flood risk is indeed high most notably in riverine areas and coastal flatlands With such a large population living in flood-prone areas flood exposure is high as well Because of such high flood risks and exposure the Malaysian Government is forced to spend a huge amount of its annual budget to mitigate against floods Under Malaysia s 5 yearly 

Plans for development the allocations for design and construction of flood mitigation projects account for USD 4 564 1st Malaysia Plan 1966 1970 USD 9 78 million 2nd Malaysia Plan 1971 1975 USD 32 6 million 3rd Malaysia Plan 1976 1980 65 2 million 4th Malaysia Plan 1981 1985 USD 97 8 million 5th Malaysia Plan 1986 1990 USD 228 2 million 6th Malaysia Plan 1991 1995 USD306 44 million 7th Malaysia Plan 1996 2000 USD 3 97 billion 8th Malaysia Plan 2001 2005 USD1 25 billion 9th Malaysia Plan 2006 2010 and USD 1 17 billion 10th Malaysia Plan 2011 2015 2 3 Post disaster program and participants A key method to coping with a post disaster situation is to have a complete framework or program that contains disaster planning aid management and output recovery and rehabilitation This sort of program borne through the stakeholders will continuously be capped to certain time and cost limitations on this matter the proposed Malaysian disaster Preparedness Centre MDPC will adopt the coordination of this system in direct contact with the Malaysian national safety Council MKN national Hydrology Institute of Malaysia NAHRIM medical remedy Society MERCY Malaysia Malaysian red Crescent Society as well as other expert parties and organizations