Impacts of Environmental Hazards and Disasters on Urban Poor Community in Dhaka City (1991-2017)

Environmental hazards and disasters are causing impacts on urban poor community in Dhaka city year after year. The inhabitants have to suffer for the impacts various ways due to live in risky housing condition. This paper analyses the casualties and damages of house according to types of the hazards and disasters since 1991 to 2017 to find out their severity. The paper also finds out the socio-economic impacts to affected households for highly impacted hazard and disaster. Data has been collected by questionnaire survey, secondary sources and field observations. The hazards and disasters such as fire, flood, water-logging, diarrhea, cholera, structural collapse etc. are causing many casualties and some of them are causing damages of house and household properties severely. All most of the house owners in the hazard prone urban poor community have to bear the cost of damaged houses for highly impacted hazard and disaster i.e., fire, flood and water logging. Most of the households have to bear the cost of damaged household goods and materials also for these three hazard and disaster. Various post hazard and disaster related diseases also affect them and they loss earnings in the post hazard and disaster hard situation. These three highly impacted hazard and disaster are the key challenges for the resilience and sustainable development at the urban poor community in Dhaka city. Proper mitigation strategies are necessary to reduce the risks of the hazards and disasters.