Abstract:
All around the globe, natural hazards like earthquakes and floods are on the rise, posing a
danger to people and infrastructure and significantly increasing the life losses and economic
issues related to them. Some areas are prone to more than one hazard at a time, making it very
essential to assess the vulnerability of that area collectively, considering all the hazards and
different aspects of vulnerability. Physical and social dimensions of vulnerability may
influence the vulnerability against one hazard directly and the other indirectly. This research
explores the physical and social aspects of vulnerability against both earthquakes and floods in
Muzaffarabad, as it is prone to both hazards. For this, well-established indicators were used.
The sample size was calculated using Yamane’s method, and 420 questionnaires were
collected. The RVS (Rapid Visual Survey) method was used for physical vulnerability
indicators. Indices were made using selected indicators for physical vulnerability against flood,
physical vulnerability against earthquake, total physical vulnerability, social vulnerability, and
overall total vulnerability. Then these indices were compared for urban and rural areas. Results
show that the people in urban areas are physically more vulnerable to earthquakes than rural
areas. Whereas people in rural areas are socially more vulnerable than in urban areas. There is
not much difference in the physical vulnerabilities of both areas against flood. The results
imply an urgent need to formulate and implement updated disaster risk reduction strategies
