English abstract
This study aims at evaluating selected environmental attributes of urban development pathways in relation to their impacts on increasing cyclone-related flooding in the Governorate of Muscat for the years 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2015. A probability-weighted flood hazard map for the 2015 urban areas was produced by combining all selected environmental attributes into one probability equation, with each attribute given a weight. The 2015 urban flood hazard map showed that 31.7 km² (8.1% of total urban areas) of the built up area is located in the very high flooding hazard zone, 88.3 km² (22.6% of urban area) is located in the high flood hazard zone, 130.5 km² (33.5% of urban area) is located in the medium flooding hazard zone, and 113.4 km² (29.1% of urban area) and 26.1 km² (6.7% of urban area) located in the low and very low flooding hazard zones. The outputs from this research emphasize the potential of environmental forces to increase flood damages. The findings provide decision makers with spatially-explicit evidences on affected areas for more effective evacuation and rescue plans.
