Flood Early Warning Systems
ENTRY DATE: 03.05.2015 | LAST UPDATE: 03.05.2015
CATEGORIES:
- Disaster Prevention
- Observation systems, information dissemination
TECHNOLOGIES MATURITY:
Applicable immediately, new methods continuously being developed
Technology Owners:
- Governments, supported by NGOs, intergovernmental agencies, communities
- e.g. UNDP and Government of Bhutan introduced an early warning system for glacial lake outburst as part of their long-term glacial lake flood risk reduction plans
- e.g. Pacific Disaster Centre in Vietnam coordinated an early warning system with the Government of Vietnam on a project funded by USAID
Needs Address
Prevention of flood disaster
Adaptation effects
- Enhances economic resilience to climatic disasters
- Stronger linkages between organisations facilitating response processes and suppliers of climate information
Overview and Features
Systems designed to warn and inform communities of likely flooding before a flood event occurs. Uses various combined tools such as sirens, automatic water level and weather stations.
Cost
Costs for equipment, infrastructure, human resources vary depending on the location and scale of the early warning system
Energy source
- Energy for equipment such as mobile phones, sirens, weather stations, etc.
- Human resources
Ease of maintenance
- Continuous maintenance and updating of monitoring systems needed
- Training and capacity development of human personnel involved is crucial
Technology performance
- Early warning systems have reduced flood induced mortality significantly
- They also reduce the economic costs incurred in the event of a flood
- E.g. in Bhutan it has been estimated that the services of the Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Early Warning System will benefit 90% of the local community even beyond the project lifetime
- Limited effectiveness due to lack of critical stakeholder involvement in Thailand
Considerations
- Cost-benefit analyses must consider the costs incurred from false alarms as well as costs savings due to mitigation actions
- Communicating early warning and uncertainty level to users is crucial to avoid users ignoring or misusing signals, which can result in significant social and economic costs
Co-benefit, suitability for developing countries
- Raises awareness about climate change in local communities
- Communication technologies employed within early warning systems must be suitable for the context of application, relying upon technologies used and accessed by target audiences (e.g. mobile phones in Bangladesh, social media in Thailand)
Information Resources
Hong Kong Observatory, 2007. Review of the Tropical Cyclone Warning System in 2006 and New Measures in 2007. Available at: http://www.hko.gov.hk/wxinfo/currwx/tc_review_rpt.pdf
Pacific Disaster Center, 2014. Flood Early Warning Project Activities in Vietnam. Available at: http://www.pdc.org/news-n-media/pdc-updates/Flood-Early-Warning-Project-Activities-in-Vietnam/ [20 March 2015]
Rogers, D. and Tsirkunov, V. 2010. Costs and benefits of Early Warning Systems. Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction. ISDR and The World Bank.
Teisberg, T.J. and Weiher, R.F. 2009. Background Paper on the Benefits and Costs of Early Warning Systems for Major Natural Hazards. The World Bank Group, Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR).
UNDP, 2013. Glacial Lake Floods Prevented in Bhutan. Available at: http://www.asia-pacific.undp.org/content/rbap/en/home/ourwork/environmentandenergy/successstories/glacial-lake-floods-prevented-in-bhutan/ [20 March 2015]
UNESCAP, 2013. Building Resilience to Natural Disasters and Major Economic Crises. Available at: http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/ThemeStudy2013-full2.pdf [20 March 2015]