Application of Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) in Flood Vulnerability Mapping: A Scenario of Akure South, Nigeria

Abstract

In flooding, dry land capable of residential, agricultural, and other economic activities is submerged by overflowing water. This causes loss of lives, properties, and destruction of infrastructure. This study applies remote sensing and GIS techniques to produce a flood vulnerability map of the Akure South metropolis. For this study, satellite image data (Landsat 8), location map of Akure South metropolis, SRTM DEM, rainfall data, soil data, and GPS coordinates; acquired during the field survey were integrated to map areas vulnerable to flooding. Using Pairwise Comparison, the various weights of factors constituting flood in the area were acquired. A weighted linear combination and analytical hierarchical process were used to produce the flood hazard and flood vulnerability map. ArcGIS Pro 2.7.3 software was used in spatial and attribute data acquisition, processing, and information presentation. The flood vulnerability results indicated that the very high vulnerability zone occupied 13.9% of the study area, while high vulnerability zone occupied 25.5%. Moderate vulnerability zone occupied 36.8% while low vulnerability zone occupied 23.8% of the study area. The study shows that, remote sensing and GIS can be effectively implemented to analyse and provide results on flood vulnerability required for prompt and effective decision-making on floods.