Flood Case Study

Jacqueline Caverly
 Flash Flood vs. Lag Response Flood
Flash Flood
• The time between the storm
event and the flood is short.
• This means that lag time is
short
• Usually occurs over dry soil
with little vegetation that water
does not penetrate easily
• Excess of water flows quickly,
floods then leaves in a short
period of time
Lag Response
• The length of time between the
storm event and banks full is
longer
• The hydrograph slope is less
steep
• Lasts longer
• Occurs when there is lots of
vegetation to trap water and
slow its movement, and in soil
that is easily penetrable.
• If pooling occurs before
seepage then this is more
likely to occur
 Case Study: Lag Response Flood
• River Thames, July 2007
• Onset of storm event occurred a month
before major flooding
• Tewkesbury, Gloucester, Oxford,
Sheffield, Hull and Yorkshire and other
towns in southern England flooded
• Lost electricity and freshwater
• 10,000 homes flooded or at risk of flooding
Location of River Thames
(England)

Scene from 2007 flood in

Oxford retrieved from
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_n
ews/england/oxfordshire/71922
34.stm http://www.bargeladycruises.com/filebin/images/maps/EnglandmapLarge.jpg
 Case Study: Flash Flood
• Sudan: Nile River , July 2007
• Over 300 people injured
• 46,000 homes destroyed
• 200,000 people displaced
• Ibrahim Adam Yusuf told reporters that it rained
for 5 hours and then he was waist high in water
• Thriving agricultural businesses are destroyed
• Houses collapsed
 Location of Nile River

Homes are flooded and destroyed

when the Nile floods
 London Case study: Human
Impacts
• London escaped flooding in 2007 due to cement dykes
built around river
– “normal” flooding was hindered by man made dykes
• It was stated that builders did not consider the flood plain
when building roads and paving areas which contributed
to the flood.
– Covering flood large areas with cement increase the volume of
water flowing into streams at one time as infiltration is decreased
(less percolation)
– Base flow of water after storm events increases (lag time
decreases)
• London’s weight causes it to be sinking on its clay base
– increase flood risk as elevation decreases
London is a big city with lots of pavement that intercepts water
to reduce infiltration
 Nile River Case Study: Human
Impacts
• Begins in Burundi- south of the equator. Flows north through Egypt.
• Drains into the Mediterranean Sea
• 19th century – Dams built across nile to increase water level for
irrigation
• Seasonal flooding no longer occurs since the construction of the
Aswan High Dam
• At present the dams control flooding
– Less flooding = increased erosion of surrounding area and increased
salt content of water and soil in the delta
• Reduce sedimentation and fertility of area
– Yearly flooding used to return valuable nutrients to soil
– Now large stretches of river above dam become clogged with silt
• Dams caused areas of Egypt and Sudan to flood and become
submerged
– Clear change in course of original channel/stream flow
 Photo of Aswan high dam
from Google Earth
Location of Aswan High dam
http://www.mead.k12.wa.us/SHILOH/Griffith/MrGsWebPage
2/Ancient%20Egypt/ancient_egypt_images/map_aswan_egy
pt.jpg

Satellite
photo of
Aswan high
dam
http://rst.gsfc.nasa.gov/
Sect6/Aswan_High_Da
m.jpg
 China Case study: Human impacts
• 90% of cities built on floodplains
– Lots of cement in cities which will decrease infiltration of water and increase
surface runoff
• Artificial dams and levees built ex. Along Huang he river and Huai he River
– These rivers now kept in narrow channel, no meandering
• Water is used for irrigation
– Amount of water in stream decreases
• Infrastructure alters landscape
– Channelization of streams will change
• Sewage discharge contaminates water
– Water ecosystems are destroyed
– Chemical makeup of stream changes
• Tourism destroys natural habitats
A vicious cycle in China
 Here is the location of the
Huang He River (China)
 Reoccurring Floods Due to
Humans
• Chao Phraya basin in Bangkok (Thailand)
• Naturally has seasonal flood, but it is intensified
by development.
• Urbanization- confines flood plains
• Dykes built to reduce flooding, but when flood
does occur the intensity is greater
• Roads built over monsoon escape routes
• Mining underground for water from aquifers is
causing Bangkok to sink which attracts water
draining with gravity
Detailed view of Chao
Where in the world?
Phraya river basin and
its eight sub basins
 Flood Response: LEDC vs. MEDC
MEDC – London • LEDC – Sudan (nile River)
• Methods of warning • People suffer from diseases spread
– Television teletext by floods (Acude Watery Diarrhoea
– Messaging using home telephone and Mlalaria)
lines (Floodline) • Livilhoods of farmers destroyed with
– Mobile telephone text messaging land and livestock
– Mobile telephone voice mail • Houses collapse (instead of simply
– E-mail, Digital television and radio flooding in London)
broadcast • Extremely vulnerable to natural
– Real-time internet flood data, including disasters- they occur often and are a
live
drain on resources
– in-home alert systems
• Received money from aid agencies
• Also there are special considerations
for elderly, handicapped, deaf, etc.
• River/ Rain Gauges work electronically
• In some instances, floods can be
predicted 36 hours in advance
• People buy houses with flood
insurance that in many cases they
don’t have to pay for
Location of Sudan (Africa)

Telephone Flood communication

Location of Nile River (Africa) service in London
•
References
"Building on sand; Britain under water.(The merits of private flood insurance)." The Economist (US).
384. 8539 (July 28, 2007): 14US. Student Resource Center - Gold. Gale. Port Moody Secondary. 18
Nov. 2008 <http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-
Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=SRC-
1&docId=A166826907&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=43pmss&version=1.0>.
<http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-
Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=SRC-
1&docId=A152639856&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=43pmss&version=1.0>.
<http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-
Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=SRC-
1&docId=A152639804&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=43pmss&version=1.0>.
• Codrington, Stephen. (2007) Planet Geography. Stephen Codrington: Hong Kong
• Encarta(2003) The Nile River. Retrieved on November 21, 2003 from:
http://www.multimedia-publishing.com/nile_river.htm
• "England flood peaks due in days." UPI NewsTrack. (July 24, 2007): NA. Student Resource Center -
Gold. Gale. Port Moody Secondary. 18 Nov. 2008
<http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-
Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T004&prodId=SRC-
1&docId=A166743335&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=43pmss&version=1.0>.
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)- Switzerland (2007)
200,000 displaced, scores killed by floods in Sudan. Retrieved November 21, 2008 from:
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/218536/118546748384.htm
• ThinkQuest (1998)The Nile River. Retrieved on November 21, 2008 from: http
://library.thinkquest.org/16645/the_land/nile_river.shtml
• United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization. Flooding. Retrieved on November
21, 2008 from: http://www.unesco.org/water/wwap/case_studies/chao_phraya/index.shtml
• Zhai, Jinliang & Deng, Wei. (2000) Flooding, floodplain development and management in China.
Retrieved on November 21, 2008 from:
http://www.biotechnology.uni-koeln.de/inco2-dev/common/contribs/15_zhai.pdf