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Surakarta City, well known as Solo City, is located in Central Java Province and is a part of downstream areas of Bengawan Solo River Basin, which has frequently been struck by flood events in recent years. Although the local authority has implemented several mitigation measurements to minimize the flood risks, the flooding remains difficult to handle and the application of flood risk management are far from adequate to reduce flood risks. Integrated flood risk management is necessary to be implemented to support the efforts of local government in reducing the impact of flooding. This research focuses on identifying the community risk perceptions and coping mechanism of people living in flood-prone area in Surakarta City by using participatory approach. This study also compares the current research with the result from the previous one, which was done by Dewi (2007) in Semarang City, another city in Central Java Province which is frequently influenced by the coastal floods. Finally, the study expected to come up with a proposed mitigation plan formulated by the local people in the prone village.Primary data was collected through interviews to 150 respondents and focus group discussion as well as participatory mapping. The respondents are taken in three villages (Kelurahan Serengan,Kelurahan Joyotakan and Kelurahan Sangkrah) which were chosen purposively to represent three level of flood susceptibility in Surakarta City (less susceptible, susceptible and very susceptible to flood areas). It is found that the flood risk perception among the local communities are varied.The frequency of flooding which occurs every year is different in every villages ranging from 0 – 7 times every year. The flood depth inside the house with the reference from the ground floor ranging between 0 – 4 meters high. The flood duration also varies from 1 – 7 days of inundation.The level of 2007 flood severity classified into three levels (normal, nuissance and disastrous).The flooding in 2007 perceived as nuisance by most of respondents. Most of the local people think that the main cause of the floods is the prolonged high rainfall followed by backwater from the canals to the city as well as dike failures and the overflow of the river.Generally, the local people living in study area usually cope with the flooding mostly by doing physical and social cultural coping strategies. It is also found that there are similarity and difference of coping strategies employed in Semarang and Surakarta City. The significant difference is observed from the physical and social coping strategies. It was found that the local people in those two cities are tend to economically and physically unprepared since most of them are lack of capacity in financial aspect. Most of the local people do not really have a special budget to prepare if the flooding occurs. However, the local people in those cities have social capacity in dealing with flooding in their own neighborhoods.The proposed mitigation plan comprises two measures: structural measures and non-structural measures. The structural measures are proposed to be conducted through the improvement of water canals in the village and preparing the common kitchen during the flooding occurrence. The non-structural measures can be realized through the waste disposal management and continue socialization of flood handling and simulation, as well as domestic waste handling.

Kata Kunci : The local people,Surakart city,Semarang city,Interviews,Focus group discussion,PArticipatory mapping,Flood characteristic,Coping mechanism