When water overflows and temporarily covers land that is normally dry, it is called a flood. But it does not happen in the same way everywhere. Different types of floods occur based on factors such as weather conditions, climate or geography.
If you understand these flood types and their causes, you can better judge your risk and take the right steps to protect yourself and your property. So today, you will learn about major flood types and how they affect you.
List of Flood Types You Need To Know
1. Flash Flood (Pluvial Floods)
Flash floods (also called pluvial floods) occur when heavy rain falls in a short time. It causes water levels to rise very quickly in streams, roads, dry riverbeds, canyons or channels. This water spread over land in the form of flood.
These types of floods are more dangerous for you, because they give you less time to react. But you can reduce flash flood damage with the installation of inflatable flood barriers and water-activated flood barriers.
2. River Flooding or Fluvial Floods
River or fluvial floods happen if water level in a river or stream rises too high and spills over its banks into nearby land. You will mostly get this type of flood warning after heavy rainfall or when melting snow adds too much water into the river.
On March 31, around 2 to 3 inches of heavy rain fell over the Maumee River basin and parts of the St. Joseph River basin. In the following days, more heavy rain and runoff entered the rivers, which caused water levels to rise to a dangerous level.
3. Coastal Flooding/Tidal Flooding
Coastal flooding is a prominent issue in areas near the sea. It occurs when strong ocean waves or high tides push water onto the land. Storms such as cyclones or hurricanes can make this flooding worse. The seawater can move into your homes, roads, buildings and fields near the coast.
This type of flood can damage buildings and also make freshwater unsafe to use. Since the 1950s, coastal flooding events have become more common. To stay safe from coastal flooding, you can use strong surge barriers or flood gates around your house doors (door flood barrier), windows or weak entry points.
4. Urban Floods or Stormwater Flooding
In urbanized areas, surfaces like roads and buildings make rainwater absorption difficult into the soil. As a result, water quickly builds up on the surface, which causes flooding in places such as streets, parking areas or basements.
In simple terms, urban floods come when rainwater builds up faster than the drainage system can handle and remove it. This type of flood can slow down traffic, damage your home and badly disturb daily life in cities.
5. Inland Flooding
The main reason behind inland flooding is the buildup of rainfall over several days in a short time. It can also happen if rivers overflow due to blockages like debris, ice & the failure of a dam or levee. For example, Hurricane Floyd in 1999 (along with Tropical Storm Dennis) led to large and severe inland flooding.
This disaster caused approximately $3 to $6 billion in total damage. To prevent inland flooding, temporary barriers such as flood boards, sandbags or floodgates are ideal options for you.
6. Areal Flooding
Areal flooding occurs if continuous rain falls over a large area for a long time. The ground becomes too wet to absorb more water. As a result, the water starts collecting in low places.
Drainage systems can also become overloaded, which causes water levels to slowly rise on roads, streets, buildings or nearby properties. It mostly affects large and flat areas instead of fast-moving water flowing through rivers or narrow valleys.
7. Intentional Floods
Intentional floods happen when people purposely release or redirect large amounts of water. Generally, this can occur in case dams open floodgates to reduce pressure or protect larger areas from damage.
In some cases, authorities also flood certain areas to control rising water and prevent bigger disasters. Although this action manages water levels, it can still damage homes & farmland. To reduce damage from intentional floods, you need strong and durable flood barriers such as automatic flood barriers & demountable flood barriers.
8. Slow-Onset Floods
Slow-onset floods develop gradually over several days or weeks. You will commonly face this danger after continuous rainfall, overflowing rivers or long periods of wet weather.
Actually, water levels rise slowly, which gives you more time to prepare and move to safer areas. But, these floods can still affect large areas and cause serious damage to your homes. Hence, you must install barriers like garage door flood barriers or driveway flood barriers around your building.
9. Snowmelt Flooding
In cold regions like Northern areas with long & cold winters, rivers and lakes can freeze. Due to this, big ice jams can form. In this way, large pieces of ice block the flow of water. This forces water to rise and spill onto nearby land.
You will notice snowmelt floods during high temperatures. The reason is that snow melts fast due to heat and sends too much water into rivers and drainage systems.
10. Riverine Flooding
If a river or stream carries more water than its channel can hold, it causes riverine flooding. Water overflows and spreads because it exceeds the limit. It can cover floodplains, low-lying land, floodways as well as places which are not officially marked as flood-risk zones.
It can damage your home and farm. Keep in mind, riverine foods mostly last for several days until the water level goes down.
11. ICE Jam Floods
The reason behind ice jam floods is that large pieces of ice build up in a river, which block the flow of water. This alarming situation mostly happens in very cold weather if rivers start to freeze, ice begins to melt or break apart.
The blocked ice acts like a dam, so water collects behind it and quickly rises. Port Deposit (USA) also faced severe ice jams and flooding in 1904 & 1936.
12. Groundwater Flood
Groundwater flooding is common in areas where a thin layer of permeable soil is present above a hard and impermeable layer such as hardpan. For example, the Salmon Creek Basin experienced serious groundwater flooding in 1999. In these conditions, the ground cannot absorb water well.
So, rainfall builds up faster than it can soak in. When more rainwater collects underground, the water table increases and starts to reach the surface. As a result, flooding water can stay on the surface for months. You will see pond-like or lake-like areas.
13. Sewer Flood
You also need to deal with floods if underground wastewater pipes are overloaded by heavy rainfall or blocked by debris. The drainage or sewer systems become full and cannot carry away wastewater and rainwater.
This is called sewer flooding. To prevent sewer flooding, you should keep your drains and pipes clean. You can also use drain plugs, sandbags or flood barriers at doors (door flood barrier) and water barrier for the basement.
To Summarize
Floods can appear in many forms and each one can affect you in different ways. Hence, you should stay alert during heavy rain and always follow safety steps to protect yourself and your property.
With the use of simple prevention, you can reduce damage and stay safe. If you want flood protection solutions based on your specific needs, you can contact JACKWIN. We provide all flood safety products at factory price.
More References:
Hurricane Floyd: September 16, 1999
Flood in Texas – History, Deaths and Flood Safety Measures
Flood Prevention: Steps, Strategy & Flood Protection Products
