Social and material vulnerability in the face of seismic hazard: an analysis of the Italian case

TL;DR

This paper assesses the social and material vulnerability of Italian municipalities to seismic hazards by analyzing open data, demographic factors, and building age, providing a ranking to inform targeted risk reduction policies.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive vulnerability index combining social, material, demographic, and structural data to rank Italian municipalities by seismic risk.

Findings

Identified key vulnerabilities in Italian municipalities.

Provided a ranking of municipalities based on vulnerability levels.

Highlighted profiles of dominant fragilities for targeted policies.

Abstract

The assessment of the vulnerability of a community endangered by seismic hazard is of paramount importance for planning a precision policy aimed at the prevention and reduction of its seismic risk. We aim at measuring the vulnerability of the Italian municipalities exposed to seismic hazard, by analyzing the open data offered by the Mappa dei Rischi dei Comuni Italiani provided by ISTAT, the Italian National Institute of Statistics. Encompassing the Index of Social and Material Vulnerability already computed by ISTAT, we also consider as referents of the latent social and material vulnerability of a community, its demographic dynamics and the age of the building stock where the community resides. Fusing the analyses of different indicators, within the context of seismic risk we offer a tentative ranking of the Italian municipalities in terms of their social and material vulnerability, together with differential profiles of their dominant fragilities which constitute the basis for planning precision policies aimed at seismic risk prevention and reduction.