Uncertainties Key to Balancing Flood Risk and Cost in Elevating Houses
What do you have on your 2020 Bingo Card? Wildfire, heat wave, global pandemic, or flooding? If it’s flooding, then it’s a good bet it will happen in many places…
Flood Protection
Flood risk, warning and protection
As Disaster Train Gathers Speed, Efforts Gear Up to Clear the Track
BARCELONA, Oct 23 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – When forecasts of severe flooding on Bangladesh’s Jamuna River came through in early July, U.N. aid officials did not just wait and hope…
Caught by Deluges and Droughts, India’s Cities Look to Become Climate Smarter
MUMBAI, Oct 26 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – India’s southern city of Hyderabad is known as a high-tech hub – but its infrastructure is looking increasingly dated in an era of…
Understanding Risk BC 2020 – Online Symposium for Risk Reduction Strategies
The Understanding Risk BC (URBC) 2020 symposium is taking place now through November, with online sessions for inspiration and collaboration to enhance resilience and improve disaster recovery. Hundreds of engaged…
Floods on Record-High Lake Victoria Expose Need for Water Cooperation
BUDALANGI, Kenya, Aug 19 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Women dashed around open kitchens dotted across the playground of Bubango Primary School, preparing to feed the hundreds of children who now…
Letting Rivers Run Wild Could Reduce UK Flooding – New Research
The UK government currently spends £2.6 billion on flood defences in England, and that amount is set to double by 2026. Flooding in February 2020 showed how that’s likely to…
Bangladesh Has Saved Thousands of Lives From a Devastating Cyclone – Here’s How
The Atlantic and Caribbean hurricane season has just begun, with the world worried about the prospect of providing humanitarian relief in the context of a pandemic and lockdowns. But Bangladesh…
Strength in Beauty – Rethinking Tsunami Defense
In tsunami preparedness, it turns out there can be strength in beauty. Rows of green hills strategically arranged along coastlines can help to fend off destruction from tsunamis while preserving…
Flood Prevention Could Bring ‘Huge’ Payoff as Global Risks Rise
LONDON, April 23 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Asia faces surging threats from coastal and river flooding as climate change brings more intense rainfall and rising seas – but investing now…
Virus-Hit Asian Nations Brace for Double Disasters as Extreme Weather Looms
Countries from India to the Philippines, already struggling with the coronavirus pandemic, are likely to also battle weather-related crises, from heat waves to cyclones, in coming months, disaster experts warned…
More Pavement, More Flooding, Study Finds
A recent Johns Hopkins University study found that impervious surfaces found in urban areas significantly increase the potential for flooding. For every percentage point increase in roads, parking lots and…
Holding Back the Tide – Sea’s Advance Threatens Tunisia’s Beaches
HAMMAMET, Tunisia (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The trunks of two palm trees lie flat on the white sand outside the Sultan Hotel in Hammamet, Tunisia, a stark sign of the…
Japan’s Experience With Earthquakes Can Help Teach Us to Learn to Live With Floods
The intense rainfall from storms this winter has caused severe flooding in numerous cities across the UK. The storms have left at least eight people dead, and economic losses have…
High and Dry: Flood-Hit Zimbabweans Look Back to Stilt Homes
BINGA, Zimbabwe, March 13 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Anyone driving through Binga, in western Zimbabwe, is greeted by a vision of the past dotted along the tarred road: thatched homes…
New Flood Damage Framework Helps Planners Prepare for Sea-Level Rise
Scientists agree that sea levels will continue to rise this century, but projections beyond 2050 are much more uncertain regarding exactly how much higher ocean levels will be by 2100.…
Protecting Mangroves Can Prevent Billions of Dollars in Global Flooding Damage Every Year
Hurricanes and tropical storms are estimated to cost the U.S. economy more than US$50 billion yearly in damage from winds and flooding. And as these storms travel across the Atlantic,…
