Alrehaili, Naif Rashed;
(2024)
Assessing the Emergency Planning Requirements for Responding to Flash Floods in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
This thesis aims to explore and assess emergency planning for responding to flash floods in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The study adopts interpretivism as its philosophical assumption; an inductive approach; a descriptive survey; and qualitative methods to address the research aim and objectives. The techniques used include a literature review, a case study strategy, and semi-structured interviews. The research sample consists of 13 expert officers from the General Directorate of Civil Defence (GDCD) in the KSA. The data are analysed by using content analysis. The research findings reveal that the GDCD is responsible for managing flash floods in the KSA. Its responsibilities include legislation, regulations, coordination with various government institutions, and implementation. Since it is a military agency, it adopts a top-down approach regarding emergency planning, which is strict and centralised. The research also finds that although emergency planning requirements are more or less in place, there is a need for further improvement and development; specifically, there is a need for better understanding, knowledge, and awareness. Furthermore, the National Plan for Natural Disaster Risk Reduction needs updating. Another finding is that it is more appropriate to rebalance emergency planning to focus equally on both the community-based and the dominant approaches. Lastly, it is found that emergency planning for responding to flash floods faces varying challenges and deficiencies. Consequently, this study recommends that during emergency planning for responding to flash floods, the GDCD should focus as much on achieving the community-based bottom-up approach as it does on the dominant top-down approach. It also strongly recommends that all emergency planning requirements developed from this study should be implemented simultaneously and as an integrated whole. By doing so, this study could help decision-makers and emergency planners at government emergency agencies to improve, develop, and reinforce emergency planning, specifically in reducing flash flood risks.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Assessing the Emergency Planning Requirements for Responding to Flash Floods in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2024. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Inst for Risk and Disaster Reduction |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10195144 |
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