Flood: What Is A Flood?

Flood
A flood is an overflow of water that submerges land which is usually dry. The
European Union (EU) Floods Directive defines a flood as a covering by water of
land not normally covered by water. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may
also be applied to the inflow of the tide .
What is a flood?
It is a natural event or occurrence where a piece of land (or area) that is usually dry
land, suddenly gets submerged under water. Some floods can occur suddenly and
recede quickly. Others take days or even months to build and discharge.
When floods happen in an area that people live, the water carries along objects like
houses, bridges, cars, furniture and even people. It can wipe away farms, trees
and many more heavy items.
Floods occur at irregular intervals and vary in size, duration and the affected area.
It is important to note that water naturally flows from high areas to low lying areas.
This means low-lying areas may flood quickly before it begins to get to higher
ground.
In this lesson, we shall see more about what causes flooding, the types of flooding,
some effects of floods and what we can do before, during and after floods occur.
What causes flooding?

Here are a few events that can cause flooding:
Rains
Each time there are more rains than the drainage system can take, there can be
floods. Sometimes, there is heavy rain for a very short period that result in floods.
In other times, there may be light rain for many days and weeks and can also result
in floods.
River overflow
Rivers can overflow their banks to cause flooding. This happens when there is
more water upstream than usual, and as it flows downstream to the adjacent lowlying areas (also called a floodplain), there is a burst and water gets into the land.
Strong winds in coastal areas
Sea water can be carried by massive winds and hurricanes onto dry coastal lands
and cause flooding. Sometimes this is made worse if the winds carry rains
themselves. Sometimes water from the sea resulting from a tsunami can flow
inland to cause damage.
Dam breaking (raptured dam or levee) (Embankments, known as levees, are built
along the side of a river and are used to prevent high water from flooding bordering
land)
Dams are man-made blocks mounted to hold water flowing down from a highland.
The power in the water is used to turn propellers to generate electricity.
Sometimes, too much water held up in the dam can cause it to break and overflow
the area. Excess water can also be intentionally released from the dam to prevent
it from breaking and that can also cause floods.
Ice and snow-melts
In many cold regions, heavy snow over the winter usually stays un-melted for
sometime. There are also mountains that have ice on top of them. Sometimes the
ice suddenly melts when the temperature rises, resulting in massive movement of
water into places that are usually dry. This is usually called a snowmelt flood.
Effects of flooding
Floods can have devastating consequences and can have effects on the economy,
environment and people.
Economic
During floods (especially flash floods), roads, bridges, farms, houses and
automobiles are destroyed. People become homeless. Additionally, the government
deploys firemen, police and other emergency apparatuses to help the affected. All
these come at a heavy cost to people and the government. It usually takes years
for affected communities to be re-built and business to come back to normalcy.
Environment
The environment also suffers when floods happen. Chemicals and other hazardous
substances end up in the water and eventually contaminate the water bodies that
floods end up in. In 2011, a huge tsunami hit Japan, and sea water flooded a part
of the coastline. The flooding caused massive leakage in nuclear plants and has
since caused high radiation in that area. Authorities in Japan fear that Fukushima
radiation levels are 18 times higher than even thought.
Additionally, flooding causes kills animals, and others insects are introduced to
affected areas, distorting the natural balance of the ecosystem.
People and animals
Many people and animals have died in flash floods. Many more are injured and
others made homeless. Water supply and electricity are disrupted and people
struggle and suffer as a result. In addition to this, flooding brings a lot of diseases
and infections including military fever, pneumonic plague, dermatopathia and
dysentery. Sometimes insects and snakes make their ways to the area and cause a
lot of havoc.
...But...
There is also something good about floods, especially those that occur in flood
plains and farm fields. Floodwaters carry lots of nutrients that are deposited in the
plains. Farmers love such soils, as they are perfect for cultivating some kinds of
crops..
Methods of flood prevention

Humans cannot stop the rains from falling or stop flowing surface water from
bursting its banks. These are natural events, but we can do something to prevent
them from having great impact. Here are a few.
Retaining walls
In some places, retaining walls levees, lakes, dams, reservoirs or retention ponds
have been constructed to hold extra water during times of flooding.
Town planning
It is important that builders acquire permission before buildings are erected. This
will ensure that that waterways are not blocked. Also drainage systems must be
covered and kept free from objects that chock them. This way, water can quickly
run through if it rains and minimize any chance of town flooding. Drainage systems
should also be covered to prevent litter from getting into them.
Vegetation
Trees, shrubs and grass help protect the land from erosion by moving water.
People in low-lying areas must be encouraged to use a lot of vegetation to help
break the power of moving flood water and also help reduce erosion.
Education
In many developing countries, drainage systems are chocked with litter and people
have little knowledge of the effects that can have during a rain. When it rains,
waterways and culverts are blocked by massive chunks of litter and debris, and
water finds its way into the streets and into peoples homes. Education is therefore
very important, to inform and caution people on the dangers of floods, what causes
floods, and what can be done to minimise its impact.
Detention basin
These are small reservoirs built and connected to waterways. They provide a
temporary storage for floodwaters. This means in an event of flooding, water is
drained into the basin first, giving people more time to evacuate. It can also reduce
the magnitude of downstream flooding.
High School Tapachula
Members: Ingrid de Lucio Ocaa

Avendao Mendoza Monica
Garcia Reyes Dominic Dayam
Rodas Arevalo Isrrael
Jose Ismael Valdez Gordillo
Teacher:Mendez Juarez Claudia Veronica
Project: Floog
Date: May 25, 2015
Place:Tapachula, Chiapas.

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Flood

What causes flooding?

Methods of flood prevention

High School Tapachula

Members: Ingrid de Lucio Ocaa

Teacher:Mendez Juarez Claudia Veronica

Date: May 25, 2015

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