Risk Assessment of Flood Disaster Induced by Typhoon Rainstorms in Guangdong Province, China

Abstract

China’s coastal areas suffer from typhoon attacks every year. Rainstorms induced by typhoons characteristically are high intensity with a large amount of rain and usually induce floods and waterlogging in the affected area. Guangdong province has the highest frequency of typhoon hits in China. It has a special geographical position as well as unique climatic features, but the typhoon flood disaster risk has not been fully assessed in this area. This article attempts to fill this gap by providing a comprehensive risk assessment for the area. By combining the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and multi-factor analysis through geographic information system (GIS) and the comprehensive weighted evaluation, the typhoon flood disaster risk is evaluated from four different aspects with seventeen indicators. A comprehensive study of the typhoon flood disaster risk is carried out, and the risk maps with a resolution of 1 km2 have been made. There is a good coherence between the typhoon flood risk map and historical records of typhoon floods in Guangdong province. The results indicate that the comprehensive typhoon flood disaster risk in the coastal regions of Guangdong province is obviously higher than in the Northern mountainous areas. Chaoshan plain and Zhanjiang city have the highest risk of typhoon flood disaster. Shaoguan and Qingyuan cities, which are in the Northern mountainous areas, have the lowest risk. The spatial distribution of typhoon flood disaster risks shows that it has certain regulations along the coast and rivers, but it may be affected by economic and human activities. This article is significant for environmental planning and disaster management strategies of the study area as well as in similar climatic regions in other parts of the world.