Caribbean Disaster Mitigation Project

Implemented by the Organization of American States

Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment
for the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance and the Caribbean Regional Program

NATURAL HAZARD MAPPING AND

VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT

Floods

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Riverine Floods
They occur when the carrying capacity of a stream or river

channel is exceeded, leading to bank overflow.

They become a hazard where development occurs in flood
prone areas.
They are controllable??

Rainfall Scenarios
Short duration, high intensity rainfall flash flooding.
Long duration, low to moderate intensity rainfall slow flood.
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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Natural Causes
Rapid excessive runoff from slopes to streams.
Triggered by heavy rains.
Promoted by steep slopes, low permeability soils, high orographic
rainfall.
Failure of dams and levees along rivers.
Backing up of flood waters by sand barriers at river mouth.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Human Contributors
Undersized drainage network.
Poor maintenance of drains and culverts.
Indiscriminate garbage disposal in rivers.
Poor or lack of maintenance of river channel.
Low flow capacity of bridges.
Inappropriate use of protective structures, e.g. levees.
Changes in land use leading to increased runoff.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
1. Flood Plains of Main Rivers
A. Narrow flood plains of steep, relatively small catchments (small
rivers) in volcanic islands and areas of youthful terrain.

High-intensity short-duration rainfall in upper watershed lead to

high surface runoff upstream and flash floods downstream.

Many towns, villages located at mouth of river.

Rivers have social/economic importance to riverbank

community.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
B. Extensive flood plain of larger streams, e.g. Caroni Plains,
Trinidad.

Flooding due to due to sustained rain over catchment and high

surface runoff from catchment hill slopes.

2. Alluvial fans, e.g. Liguanea Fan, Yallahs Valley, Jamaica.

All fan may be at risk due to high water velocity, numerous

channels across fan surface.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
3. Downstream of Potentially Unstable Engineered Dams, e.g.
Roseau (Compton) Dam, St. Lucia.

Flooding due to dam breach / overtopping.

Floods may be high velocity, rapid, deep - little warning.

Downstream communities at risk.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
4. Upstream of Potential Sites of Landslide Dams.

Area upstream of dam likely to be flooded as water levels in

dammed river rise.

Deep water, lives may be lost.

5. Downstream of Potentially Unstable Landslide Dams.

Dam break or overtopping will cause flooding downstream;

high velocity flow, little warning. e.g. Layou landslide dams,
Dominica.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
6. Areas Behind Unsafe or Inadequate Levees.

Where river lies above of floodplain, flooding is prolonged.

Why are these areas at greatest risk?

Flood plains favorable site for development.

Towns (including capital cities) are located at mouths of rivers.
Represent only flat land on island.
High fertility of flood plain.
Where flood plains are narrow (confined between steep valley
walls), impact is greater.

FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Flood Hazard Maps
Purpose
To define extent, frequency and magnitude of hazard.
Flood Hazard Mapping
Purpose
To identify areas prone to flooding and/or at risk.
To determine magnitude of the hazard height of water levels.
To determine frequency of occurrence.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Simple Approach

Map past and/or existing flood zones as indication of area at risk.

Method
Field Mapping
Document evidence of flood levels, historic flood levels (interview
villagers).
Used to ground truth remotely-sensed data.
In some cases only source of information, e.g. under emergency
conditions.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Data Required
Aerial photographs.
Remotely-sensed imagery.
Utility
Map shows boundaries of zone affected by flooding.
Remote sensed data useful for temporal studies, i.e. examine
variation in flood zone over time with change in basin
characteristics, development of flood plain.
Can be used to identify areas at risk.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Detailed Approach

Use computer models to identify the actual location of water

levels in the event of a flood.

Methodology
e.g. Jamaica Flood Mapping Program (Molina, 1987)
Apply hydraulic analysis to peak flow data for several river
cross-sections.
Cross sections determined from topographic map.
Hydraulic analysis will determine the level of water for a given
flood event.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT

Information Required
1. Topography
Topographic base required to generate cross sections of river.
Scale and contour interval may vary depending on relief and
population at risk.
Topographic base at 1:2500 scale maximum best. Contour
interval of 0.3 m best.
Sources of Information
Lands and Surveys Department.
Field mapping.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Constraints
Non-availability of maps at appropriate scale or maps not
available for entire study area.
May use 1:5000 maps where 1:2500 not available = less
accurate.
Up to 1:10000 scale maps have been used problems in
determining river geometry generalised result.
2.

Hydrology
Peak flow magnitude and associated return periods.
Used to generate flood-flow frequency relationship.
Return periods - 100-yr, 50-yr, 25-yr , 10-yr or 5-yr.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Sources of Information
Technical reports.
Statistical analyses.
Need historical record of peak flow.
Rainfall-runoff models.
Calculates excess runoff peak flow magnitude.
Rainfall intensity, duration, depths and frequency
Meteorological Office.
Peak flow records Water Resources Department.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
3. Hydraulic Analysis
Calculates expected water levels for given peak discharges and
given channel and overbank conditions.
Need information on channel characteristics, e.g. roughness
coefficients.
Constraints
Difficult to determine some parameters.
Well defined river channel difficult to determine for some flood
prone areas, e.g. alluvial fans.
Roughness coefficient of channel.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Concerns
Lack or incomplete rainfall database.
Obsolete data, e.g. channel modified by flood.
Interpretation of data, e.g. flood maps of Trinidad.
Utility of Flood Hazard Maps
Basis for flood risk mapping.
Plan appropriate land use in areas at risk.

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FLOOD HAZARD MAPPING AND VULNERABILITY

ASSESSMENT
Organisations to Contact

Ministry of Works (Drainage, Hydrology Divisions)

Water Resources Agency
National Disaster Offices

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