FLOOD AND THE EFFECTS OF FLOOD

A flood is a natural disaster resulting from the volume of water within a bady of water such as river or lake WHAT IS FLOOD?

(Map of flood damage and the danger)

Heavy rainfall and rapid snowmelt are some immediate reasons for flooding CAUSES OF FLOOD

The collapse or overflowing of dams

Replacement of the creek or river beds

The destruction of the environment and the forests

The settlements on the edge of creek

Unplanned urbanization and infrastructure problems

Uncleaned river and creek beds, Stuffing these areas with substances such as soil and so on.

A flood,among other natural disasters,has a deep impact on Turkey. Due to flood, it causes not only lost of Turkish trillions but also lives of people in Turkey. FLOOD IN TURKEY

Turkey has a semi-arid climate except some regions. However, this general feature varies from region to region.

Annual average rainfall of Turkey is about 640 millimeter.

This rate decreases to 250 millimeter rainfall in the South-eastern Anatolia Region

However,in the eastern part of the Black Sea Region,this rate increases to 3000 millimeter rainfall.

Most of the overflowing in Turkey occur between March and July. Black Sea, Mediterranean and Western Anatolia Regions are emerged as the most sensitive regions in Turkey for flooding.

The data provided by the internationnal Emergency Disasters Database (Em- DAT) states that 32 major floods took place in Turkey between 1903 and 2006.

1.272 people died because of floods. Approximately people were homeless because of these disasters.

Facilities including the prevention of flood and the decrease of its damage are carried out by the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works.

Until the end of 1999, about small water works and 71 large water project construction was complated.In residential area such as neighborhood, village, town, district,county and in hectares of agriculture area flood protection and control is provided.

Especially developing countries are affected by flooding.The reason for this is that the areas having the risk of flooding are used as residential area by people. FLOOD AROUND THE WORLD

Indeed, 65% of the loss of lives caused by flooding in the world has occured in Bangladesh. In addition to this, 5 million people died from flooding in China between

In the United States, Mississippi and Missouri rivers overflowed in spring and summer in 1993 and 9 provinces were affected by the flood.

As a result of the flood, homes were destroyed, people were abandoned, 4 million hectares of agricultural land remained under water and the expected amount of the product decreased by 17%.

The flood occured on November, 1999 in France. It caused 36 fatalities. Approximately people were affected by flooding in 2003.

55 people lost their lives and people were affected by the floods in Poland in 1993.

Europe, which had one of the heavist rainfall months in 2002, was damaged by flood. 60 people in Russia,9 people in Czech Repuplic, 14 people in Germany,7 people in Romania and 4 people in Austria died from flooding.

On account of the heavy rainfall and the floods in Romania in 2005, 10 people died.

In the middle and northern parts of England in 2007, severe rainfall and floding lead to the death of 6 people

Excessive rains caused floods in Poland in Life came to a halt due to the floods in several cities. Hundreds of people were evacuated from their homes in the country and at least 15 people lost their lives.

THE DAMAGES OF FLOOD Floods all around the world causes the loss of lives and properties.Approximately 75 million people are affected by flooding every day.

a. Mass Effect :The materials, carried by the impact of water, may destroy living and non living things and cultural environment. These may cause the loss of lives and properties.

b. Impact of Erosion : The formation of cracks and cavities along the basin can lead to crashes on the slopes of river bed. Large amount of soil are moved to other places.

c. Flooding : Agricultural products, portable or unportable goods are damaged by flooding and it leads to loss of lives.

d. Shift Effect: Some of the biggest damages caused by the flood emerges as a result of the shift effect. Because they are effective and permanent damages. It can be listed as follwing:

(1) Different surface materials that coat an area (especially in the agricultural field), disrupt the natural structure of the area, reduce the quality and decrease the efficiency.

(2) With the shift effect of floods and as a result of blockage of stream beds, flood waters increasingly becomes uncontrolled.

(3) As the hydroelectric power plants cannot fulfill their functions, the production of energy may decrease.

(4) Because of transported and stacked materials, highways and railways are closed and transportation are reduced.

(5) Water channels can become clogged and drainage systems may be damaged by flooding.

(6) Ports can be destroyed in large-scale.

(7) Various socio-economic problems may arise.

HOW CAN WE DECREASE THE EFFECTS OF FLOOD? For every kind of meteorological disasters, an urgent system should be designed immediately by the general directorate of meteorology.

For the present, the warning units working with radar systems and satellite data should be established for determing rainfall areas and density of rainfall.

The rescue team, working in coordination with this warning units, should be formed in the cities and the towns.

Communication devices such as televisions and radios should inform people about the methods that they should follow in an emergency situation.

Statistical studies should be made to prevent flood.

We should give more importance to the international cooperation. Long-term and wide-ranging studies should be carried out.

Local municipalities shold give importance to the settlements in the creek and the river beds. They should remove obstacles and prevent the settlement in these areas.

The channels combining rivers and streams to the sea should be cleaned regularly.

Municipalities should make the planning of the cities regularly and give importance to infrastructure works.

Dams for controling water and anti-flooding sets should be built.

Forests should be protected. Areas, especially having the risk of erosion, should be reforested.

The staging should be done in the sloping lands to reduce the speed of the water.

We should give importance to education and the works such as conferences, panels, symposium should be carried in order to reinforce environmental awareness.

PREPARED BY ISMAIL ODABASI Social Science Teacher THANKS November, 2011 Nuriye Primary School Unye – ORDU / TURKEY