Flood

Flood

Flood control

In many countries across the world, rivers prone to floods are often carefully managed. Defences such as levees, bunds, reservoirs, and weirs are used to prevent rivers from bursting their banks.

When these defences fail, emergency measures such as sandbags or portable inflatable tubes are used.

Coastal flooding has been addressed in Europe and the Americas with coastal defences, such as sea walls, beach nourishment, and barrier islands.

Methods of control
In many countries, rivers prone to floods are often carefully managed. Defences such as levees, bunds, reservoirs, and weirs are used to prevent rivers from bursting their banks. When these defences fail, emergency measures such as sandbags or portable inflatable tubes are used. Coastal flooding has been addressed in Europe and the Americas with coastal defences, such as sea walls, beach nourishment, and barrier islands.

A dike is another method of flood protection. A dikes lowers the risk of having floods compared to other methods. It can help prevent damage; however it is better to combine the dike with other flood control methods to reduce the risk of a collapsed dike.

A weir, also known as a lowhead dam, is most often used to create millponds, but on the Humber River in Toronto, a weir was built near Raymore Drive to prevent a recurrence of the flooding caused by Hurricane Hazel in 1954 which destroyed nearly two fifths of the street.

Homes Float Away in Flood

You see more...

• Website on the Great Flood of Paris in 1910
• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Healthy Water - Flood Water Exposure Health risks, cleanup of flood waters, and links to flood resources
• American Water Resources Association
• Associated Programme on Flood Management from World Meteorological Organization
• Dartmouth Flood Observatory
• Decision tree to choose an uncertainty method for hydrological and hydraulic modelling, Choosing an uncertainty analysis for flood modeling.
• DeltaWorks.Org Flood protecting dams and barriers project in the Netherlands
• Europe floods 2006
• Flood Risk Management Research Consortium
• International Flood Initiative
• International teaching module "Integrated Flood Risk Management of Extreme Events" (Floodmaster)
• Predictions Off for Global Warming Flood Risk - Study.
• Protecting against the Next Katrina - Scientific American Magazine (October 2005)
• Related articles at Appropedia, a wiki for non-Wikipedia (projects & practical "how to") content.
• Safecoast Knowledge exchange on coastal flooding and climate change in the North Sea region
• Social & Economic Benefits/Costs of Heavy Rain & Flooding NOAA Economics