Geographic Information System (GIS) Assessment of the Impact of Flooding on Residential Buildings in Akure, Nigeria (Published)
Flooding has caused the deaths of people, collapse of buildings, destruction of properties, and a lot of worries to occupants in Nigeria. In spite of persistent incident of flooding in many areas, the researches that are aimed at lessening the impacts of flooding, especially on residential buildings close to riverbanks are few. The study assessed the influence of flooding on residential buildings in Ajeromi Community of Ondo State, Nigeria using Geographic Information System (GIS). A triangulation research approach involving structured questionnaire, personal observation and the application of Geographic Information System (GIS) were used. Data were collected from the occupants of buildings and GIS was used to collect information on the geo-referencing of affected buildings showing river channels, contours, and the topography of the area. From the result, the major effects of flooding were; paint defects, present of rot and mould, damage to the finishes of buildings, wall dampness, and cracking of ground floor due to uplift pressure. The major reason for vulnerability of these residential buildings to flooding were heavy rainfalls and climate changes, construction of buildings closes to waterways, and poor physical planning of the community. Flood resilience measures for residential occupants in the areas includes adequate channelization of waterbodies and avoidance of waterways when constructing buildings. All the results correlated with the findings of results from physical assessment and GIS geo-referencing. Based on the findings, GIS can be used to assess residential buildings to prevent flooding and enhance flood resilience.
Keywords: : GIS, Flooding, Impact, Nigeria, Residential Buildings
Enhancing Security in Residential Building through Architectural Approach: Improving Building Occupants’ Safety through Additional Security Measures (Published)
Insecurity is a crucial challenge confronting the Nigerian nation in recent time with dire consequences of deaths, vandalisms and reversals of developmental strides. This had left many homeless, traumatized and several communities deserted in search of safer habitations. Residential buildings being homes that hold valuables of people and cocoons offering shelter had been targets of perpetrators of insecurity which often takes the forms of stealing, banditry, kidnapping, farmer-herder clashes, terrorism and militancy. The various reports on insecurity suggested that there is a correlation between the architecture of buildings and safety of its occupants when they are confronted with security challenge. This spurs the study to explore how best architectural strategies can be deployed to enhance safety of building occupants. The study area was Lokoja, a city in North central Nigeria where many had suffered insecurity in their homes. A total of 122 questionnaires were circulated among different categories of home-users to obtain data for analyses which provided answers to the various research questions of the study. Finally, SPSS statistical tool was used for the descriptive statistical survey conducted to reveal the study’s findings such as the need for additional security measures by respondents and a proof of significant association between the nature of security challenge and knowledge of building design.In conclusion, the study showed that insecurity will continued to be a trendychallenge among the home owners in the light proliferation of firearms and high rate of unemployment in the country.
Keywords: Insecurity, Movement, Residential Buildings, Safety Measures, building units