F LAS H F L O O D

DISASTER RISK REDUCTION AND READINESS PREPARED BY: DENOSTA, JEANELLE M.

 WHAT IS A FLASHFLOOD?
▪ -A sudden flood of great volume,
usually caused by a heavy rain, or
failure of dam or the thaw of an ice
jam. . These fast moving waters can
move boulders,tear out trees, and
destroy buildings.
▪ -Occurs suddenly in a short duration
▪ -Little or no advance warning,over a
relatively small time
 FLOOD
Title and Content Layout with ChartFLASH FLOOD
 It is an event that occurs AFTER
6 hours following the end of the
causative event which result in
fatalities, injuries, and/or
significant damage to property.
 Flooding events usually take
longer to develop and they
usually occur along or near larger
rivers. The duration of flooding
events may extend longer that
24 hours, perhaps several days.
 It is an event that occurs WITHIN 6
hours following the end of the
causative event which result in
fatalities, injuries, and/or
significant damage to property.
 Flash flooding events develop
rapidly and can occur anywhere
water collects, especially areas of
steep terrain, and water runoffs.
Flash floods rarely last more than
12 hours.
 CAUSES OF FLASH FLOODS

▪ Heavy Rainfall
▪ River Overflow
▪ Strong Winds in Coastal Areas
▪ Dam Breaking
Heavy Rainfall
Each time there are more rains than the
drainage system can, there can be floods.

River Overflow
If there is more water upstream than
usual, and as it flows downstream to the
adjacent low-lying areas, 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 flash
flooding. Water from the sea resulting from a tsunami
can flow inland to cause damage.
Dam Breaking
Too much water held up in the dam can cause
it to break and overflow the area. Excess water can be also
intentionally released from the dam to prevent it from
breaking and that can also cause flood.
Other factors:
 Volume, spatial distribution, intensity and duration of rainfall over
a catchment.

 Capacity of the watercourse or stream network to convey runoff.

 Catchment and weather conditions prior to a rainfall event.

Ground cover.

 Topography.

.
F A C T S !
The Big Thompson Flood in
Colorado in 1976, killed 140
people. 95% of those killed in
this flash flood tried to outrun
the waters along their path
rather than climbing rocks or
going uphill to higher
grounds.
 EFFECTS

 Economic
 Environment
 People and Animals
 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
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.
 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.
F A C T S !
▪ Just 6 inches of
rapidly moving
flood water has
the strength to
knock a person
down.
The End~ Thank You~