Floods

Most floods are caused by heavy rain. The rain quickly finds its way to the river, the river gets too full, and water flows over the banks.

Flash Floods

A burst of very heavy rain can cause a sudden flood called a flash flood. This happens so fast that people get no warning. They can get drapped, and drowned.

Adding to the flood risk

Heavy rain is the main cause of floods. And anything that stops the rain soaking into the ground will add to the flood risk.

How to protect ourselves from floods

1) Control the water level

-Build a dam on the river to trap water. You can let the water out slowly.

- Build a pumping stations. Then when the water level rises, you pump water out of the river and into storage basins, or even onto empty fields

2)Build flood defenses.

- Build up the river banks to make embankments, to keep water in.

-OR build flood barriers around built up areas to keep water out.

3) Make the river channel bigger

- You could dredge material from the river bed and banks, so that the channel will hold more water

4) Improve street drainage

-Make sure street drains can cope with heavy rainfall

-Make sure they are cleaned often, to remove any blockages

- IF the water from them could be drained into soil, instead of the river, the river would not rise fast

5) Control land use around the river

-Stop people building on the flood plain

-Plant more trees in the drainage basin

-Pay farmers to allow fields along the river get flooded

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