Publications
Understanding and Managing Risk in Historic Areas: A Multi-hazard Vulnerability Assessment of the Historic City Centre of Guimarães, Portugal
A multi-hazard vulnerability assessment of the Historic Centre of Guimarães, Portugal, reveals critical insights into the city's exposure to flood and fire risks. The study identifies key indicators of sensitivity and exposure, providing a foundation for cost-efficient risk reduction strategies tailored to historic urban areas. By analyzing on-site data collected over different periods using two index-based methodologies, researchers mapped vulnerability outputs via GIS tools, enhancing readability and analysis. This approach offers practical guidance for managing threats in culturally significant yet vulnerable regions.
An Integrated Approach for Assessing Flood Risk in Historic City Centres
A new methodology for assessing flood risk in historic city centres, tested on the UNESCO-listed Historic Centre of Guimarães (Portugal), reveals that combining hazard and physical vulnerability data can identify high-risk buildings otherwise overlooked by traditional risk assessments. The study used hydrologic–hydraulic modelling to simulate a 100-year flood scenario, deriving hazard scores from flood extent, depth, and velocity. Vulnerability was evaluated based on field-collected data such as building orientation, heritage status, age, material, and condition. By integrating these components into a risk-matrix, the research demonstrated that both individual and crossed analyses provide complementary insights—highlighting critical risk factors while also uncovering previously unnoticed high-risk structures. This approach offers a more nuanced understanding of flood risk in vulnerable urban areas.
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