Premium
THE FLOOD OF '96 AND ITS SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS IN THE SUSQUEHANNA RWER BASIN 1
Author(s) -
Yarnal B.,
Johnson D. L.,
Frakes B. J.,
Bowles G. I.,
Pascale P.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
jawra journal of the american water resources association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.957
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1752-1688
pISSN - 1093-474X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-1688.1997.tb03554.x
Subject(s) - flood myth , flooding (psychology) , hydrology (agriculture) , environmental science , surface runoff , context (archaeology) , structural basin , storm , drainage basin , 100 year flood , flood forecasting , flood stage , water resource management , geography , geology , meteorology , archaeology , geomorphology , cartography , psychology , ecology , geotechnical engineering , psychotherapist , biology
The meteorology flood hydroclimatolog and socioeconomic impacts of the Flood of January 1996 in the Susquehanna River Basin are explored. The analysis explains how an unusual storm system brought high humidities, high temperatures, strong winds, and heavy rain to the basin. The rapid melt of the deep snowpack, combined with the heavy rainfall, produced the sudden release of large volumes of water. Because the ground surface was frozen or saturated, this water moved primarily as overland flow. Thus, the flood waters were not restricted to areas immediately adjacent to stream channels and, consequently, some of the largest impacts were on people, property, and infrastructure in areas not normally prone to flooding. Socioeconomic patterns of flooding over time and space are investigated to put this flood into context and to highlight its impacts. The analysis concludes that if such overland flooding is a more common feature of climate change, then the current vulnerability to this form of flooding and its economic implications must be considered carefully.