Analyze human vulnerability to the seismic threat in the Chimbo canton, Bolívar province

Abstract

In contemporary history, earthquakes are systematically mentioned as a natural phenomenon with significant social
impact; which, especially in urban settings, trigger a series of disorders in daily life that are difficult to predict. The
objective of the research is to evaluate human vulnerability to the seismic threat in the Chimbo canton, Bolívar province;
from the social, institutional and cultural environments. The research is of a mixed approach, of a non-experimental type,
under an alpha numerical method. The criteria applied are part of the selection of indicators and parameters for evaluation,
analysis and mixed weighting, as well as the estimation of the level of vulnerability (high, medium and low). Among the
methodologies considered, those of the National Secretariat for Risk Management (SNGR) and the United Nations
Development Program (UNDP) stand out. The sample consisted of 430 subjects living in the urban area of the Chimbo
canton and the parishes of La Magdalena and La Asunción. The results highlight that, in the Chimbo canton, there is
evidence of a medium level of vulnerability (62%) of the buildings. In the Magdalena parish it is average (61%) and in
Asunción average (71%). The social and institutional vulnerability of the urban area of the Chimbo canton is at a medium
level and, in the parishes of La Magdalena it is high and La Asunción medium. The conclusions detail that the cultural
vulnerability in the urban area of the Chimbo canton is medium, due to the knowledge about the seismic threat. In the
parishes of La Magdalena and La Asunción, cultural vulnerability is high, given the insufficient information of the
informants about the existing seismic threats in each area.