DOI: 10.36347/sjebm.2018.v05i07.004

Pages: 575-589

The objectives of this study are to construct a household flood vulnerability index (FVI) and measure vulnerability to floods among affected Kelantanese households. By applying Balica and Wright (2010)’s FVI methodology in this study, the FVI is constructed via integrating the primary and secondary data. While the primary data were collected from the submission of households’ questionnaires, the secondary data were obtained from authoritative organizations. The FVI was then applied to evaluate flood vulnerability levels of households in Kota Bharu and Kuala Krai, respectively. Among others, Kota Bharu is found to be economically susceptible to floods evidenced from prevailing income disparities among the households whereas Kuala Krai is physically susceptible to floods mainly due to the conditions of low-lying areas and extreme rainfall pattern. Serving as a reliable system of vulnerability indicators, the FVI enables wider evaluation of an area from multi-faceted perspectives, thus strategically benefitting the decision and policy makers, public and populations at risk.