World Disasters Report 2010 - International Federation of Red Cross ...

know the phone number) and the fire engines
could not access some areas because there
were no roads or because people had put their
possessions in the road.
The settlement has had other serious fires
– for instance, before the February 2004 fires,
there had been fires which destroyed between
40 and 90 buildings in 1995, 1997, 2001
and 2003. In 2008, about 23 houses were
burnt down in February, 60 in August, 200 in
late November and 200 in early December.
The vulnerability gap: How trends in disasters fit
within a broader picture of risk and vulnerability
One thing these different visions of urban risk have in common is that risk we are
experiencing in cities both today and in the future are produced over time, through
the economic processes of urban development and various decisions taken at different
times by the authorities and the citizens. What we see as risk in cities, such as growth in
informal or illegal settlements, inadequate infrastructure or services, building on sites
at risk from high winds, floods or landslides, or building with flammable materials, is
actually caused by a ‘vulnerability gap’. On one side of the gap is the lack of knowledge
or financial capacity and sometimes willingness of urban authorities to reduce vulnerabilities.
Priorities in cities for economic growth, urban expansion and the fact that the
well-off in cities may not be overly vulnerable to disasters thwart efforts to reduce risk.
On the other side of the vulnerability gap are the poor urban communities, who do
what they can to reduce their vulnerability, but ultimately are limited in their financial
and political capability to reduce the risk they face.
Box 2.3 shows how in Istanbul, Turkey this vulnerability gap has emerged over time to
produce a city highly vulnerable to earthquakes and flood hazards. As in Istanbul, this
vulnerability gap in cities can eventually be narrowed as governments understand better
the risks and develop the capability to take actions to reduce vulnerability in ways
that are accountable to everyone in the city.
Box 2.3 The vulnerability gap in Istanbul, Turkey
Istanbul, the largest city and centre of production
in Turkey, is highly vulnerable to earthquakes,
landslides and flood hazards. This
The initial causes of these fires are often
not clear but the widespread use of candles for
lighting and open fires or dangerous paraffin
stoves for cooking and heating is clearly part
of the reason. The close physical proximity of
buildings and the many that are made of flammable
materials help explain why fires spread
from house to house – although many of the
more severe fires here and in other informal
settlements in Cape Town are also associated
with high winds. �
vulnerability is partly a factor of Istanbul’s
location, lying just north of the seismically active
Anatolian fault line, but it is the precarious and
World Disasters Report 2010 – Focus on urban risk
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