Building Community Resilience to Flash Floods: Lessons Learnt from a Case Study in the Valles Urban Area, SLP, Mexico

Abstract

Floods are frequent events in Mexico that often lead to economic losses. Nonetheless, learning from these effects after such disasters that lead to improved preparedness and community resilience is limited. This paper analyzes the Magisterial community building resilience to flash floods. Based on Liao theoretical approach about the key properties of resilience, a survey was carried out based on household questionnaires and expert interviews in the selected study area. The analysis of building resilience community allowed the identification of strategies used to cope with flash floods and identify the aspects that have favored or inhibited the construction of resilience. In order to cope with flash floods, the community has promoted strategies independent of those carried out by the local government, but these do not have a significant contribution to resilience. Based on the results, it is established that the Magisterial community, although organized on its own initiative and having made adjustments through the implementation of strategies to cope with flash floods, is not a resilient community. However, fundamental aspects for the construction of resilience have been developed. A radical change in Mexico's flood risk management paradigm is required to promote resilience at all governance and decision-making levels.