Why Does Flood Happen

Why Does Flood Happen

Today we'll talk about floods. Floods are natural events in which a dry area or a dry piece of land suddenly gets submerged underwater. It simply means too much water everywhere even around our houses. Flooding is very dangerous, the overflowing water carries along objects like Houses, Bridges, Furniture, trees, farms animals even people. Sometimes it carries a whole city so dangerous the natural behaviour of water is that it moves from higher ground to lower ground level which means the lower ground is a lot more likely to experience flooding.

Reasons that Cause Flooding

·         Rain

·         Over-flowing rivers

·         Breaking of Dams

·         Strong Winds

·         Melting Snow

Rain

The main reason for flooding is rain. Whenever it rains heavily and there is less drainage, flooding occurs.

Over-Flowing Rivers

Overflowing Rivers are when there is more water Upstream than usual and as it flows Downstream to the low-lying areas causes floods, and the excess water flows into the land causing flooding.

Breaking of Dams

Breaking of dams when there's too much water behind a dam the force of water breaks it causing overflowing of water which results in flooding.

Strong Winds

Strong winds and sea water can be carried by strong winds and hurricanes onto dry Coastal lands which result in flooding sometimes the winds have Rains by themselves tropical Cyclones and hurricanes can produce rains that cause massive flooding.

Melting Snow

Melting snow when the temperature rises ice melts resulting in immense movement of water into dry places.

Types of Flood

·         Flash Flood

·         Rapid Onset Flood

·         Slow Onset Flood

·         Storm Surge Flood

Flash floods

·         No warning

·         No preparation

·         Very Devastating

A flood hatch that develops in less than six hours is called a flash flood they can occur almost everywhere but most commonly in low-altitude areas with poor drainage systems low-altitude, no warning, and no preparation so the impact can be devastating rapid onset floods.

Rapid Onset Floods

·         More Damages

·         Less time for Execution

Last for usually one or two days and cause more damage as people usually have less time to plan their evacuation

Slow onset floods

·         Earlier Waring

·         Spread of Diseases

They tend to develop slowly and can last for days and even weeks this type of flood tends to give people time to move to Higher Ground slow onset floods occur in Bangladesh every year causing many diseases.

Storm Surge Flooding

·         Most Dangerous

·         About 45Miles wide

This happens during a storm hurricane or Cyclone it is a strong wave of water that sweeps onto land it's an incredibly dangerous threat for people living along the coast it was severe in New Orleans USA during Hurricane Katrina in 2007. the results of floods are devastating.

Safety Tips Before, During, and After Flood

We should try our best to follow some safety tips before, during, and after flooding. Some of them are;
1.       If you have pre-information about flooding be prepared to evacuate.
2.       Turn off the gas and electrical appliances. Try going to a place that is on Higher Ground.
3.       Stay away from power lines and power cables.
4.       Keep a list of emergency contacts with you.
5.       Use Extreme Caution when entering buildings after a flood.
6.       Damage is generally long term many times floods can destroy everything, always help others.

Thank you