From risk to resilience and sustainability: Addressing urban flash floods and waterlogging

Urban flash floods, which occur rapidly in densely populated areas, pose significant risks to infrastructure, public safety, and sustainable development. These events, along with the resulting waterlogging, are becoming increasingly common. Understanding and predicting flash floods and waterlogging are essential for building resilience and mitigating their harmful effects. A lack of integrated insights and collaboration among diverse stakeholders hampers effective responses. This study, focused on a flood-prone coastal city, uses case study, observations, and interviews with public, private, nonprofit, and academic representatives to explore the causes, risks, and impacts of these events. Key findings highlight governance and planning failures, along with climate factors, as primary contributors to urban flooding and waterlogging. Additionally, solid waste in drainage systems and inadequate infrastructure further exacerbate the problem. Severe impacts on urban life, affecting all city dwellers, include economic losses, displacement, infrastructure damage, and ecological harm, with the urban poor being the most affected. Stakeholders prioritize improved infrastructure, collaborative governance, climate-resilient policies, and community engagement to transform a vulnerable city into a safe, resilient, and sustainable one. This research advances the understanding of urban flash floods and waterlogging, offering actionable multi-stakeholder insights for preventing these hazards and ensuring sustainable urban development.