Disaster risk assessment: The experience of the city of Rio De Janeiro in developing an impact scale for meteorological-related disasters

The geographic region where the City of Rio de Janeiro is located presents high spatial and temporal variability of meteorological events. The city has a history of recurrent disasters caused by natural hazards, which are in part a result of the urban sprawl, which densely concentrates people and buildings between hills and sea, lagoons and bays. Part of this urban sprawl is in areas at risk of flooding and landslide. The present work aims to create an impact scale that allows the measurement of impacts caused by meteorological events in the city. This scale has the potential to significantly support the understanding of when, how and why the city was impacted, promoting the search for municipal resilience and disaster risk reduction. This study was focused on the particularities of the analyzed city but could support the formulation of similar proposals in other cities, both in Brazil and in other countries.