Vulnerability and resilience of coastal communities is increasingly important in the face of sea level rise and severe storms. Situated at the nexus of geographic information systems and natural hazard vulnerability, this thesis uses spatial analyses of demographic data and survey responses to compare a social vulnerability index with local perceptions of coastal hazards in the aftermath of Hurricanes Matthew and Irma. It finds significant variation in perceptions across the vulnerability spectrum and relates these differences to theories of expert and non-expert knowledge. It demonstrates geovisualization techniques that can be used to integrate demographic indicators with more localized dimensions of vulnerability.