Analysis of urban vulnerability before natural and anthropogenic hazards: Case study, human settlement Colinas de la provincia, municipality of Ocaña, Colombia

Abstract

Urban vulnerability in human settlements located in areas susceptible to landslides is not subject to a danger assessment, since there is no basis to determine the probability of its occurrence in a certain period of time. Most evaluation procedures for the landslide hazard zoning employ a few urban components and subcomponents important or significant to estimate the relative danger. The danger evolution in such areas leads to make the population vulnerable to threats, whether natural or anthropogenic, that jeopardizes its integrity. In this research, an urban vulnerability analysis was carried out using a methodology that established the susceptibility of an urban settlement to be affected by natural and anthropic factors. The latter becomes an input so that the authorities in charge of risk management can establish actions to reduce this vulnerability in a certain way, through plans that contain actions, whether preventive or corrective; in order that these actions eliminate real and potential causes of the presented problem, thus reducing the situation of vulnerability and therefore the risk.