More than 50% of India is flood prone. A recent survey classified more than thirty eight cities in India as being prone to floods. India has had its share of floods. Being a developing country, a flood in India causes more devastation than in developed countries. The enormous and highly-concentrated population in the country compounds the problem. The following are the top ten reasons for floods in India.
- Dams Old dams pose an environmental hazard. If there is a failure in the dam, water contained can come out and flood the entire region in a matter of minutes. Dams can fail without anyone knowing about it. Heavy rainfall could cause a dam-break.
- Rain and thunderstorm Heavy rain floods low-lying areas. It causes flash floods. These types of floods are strong in force. The water pressure uproots trees and causes damage to property. The best way to prevent it is to have a plan that routes rainwater to an organized and controlled direction. It also helps to seal-off low lying areas with concrete structures.
- Flood after fire Flood can happen after wildfires. The wildfire chars the ground. The ground loses the ability to absorb water. Over a period of time, rainwater accumulates on the ground surface. It slowly starts gaining momentum and induces a flood.
- Ice jams… Prolonged cold weather freezes the surface of water bodies. It is common to see frozen rivers during the cold season. Extreme cold weather can freeze an entire river. After some time, thaws appear on the ice surface. The ice starts to chunk. The ice chunks cause obstruction to the natural flow of the river water. This causes flooding. Water flows in uncontrolled directions.
- Mudflows Heavy rains and brush loss cause mudflow. Mudflows are characterized by fast moving mass of liquid and mud on dry land. Mudflow happens due to water saturation. When there is a snowmelt, a mudflow can happen. This causes a thick mass of moving liquid and mud that comes downhill at great velocity. Mudflows are a type of landslide.
- Construction New development alters the natural underground drainage system. Underground waterways lose direction. This increases the probability of a water jam below the ground. Water will slowly make its way with great force and cause floods. This problem compounds when there are storms and heavy rainfall.
- Melting snow By the middle of winter or early spring, many snow-stocked regions could experience snowmelt. A thaw in the mass build-up of snow occurs. The thaw releases the rigidity of snow and causes water to escape. The water spills over and cumulatively causes floods.
- Spring thaw Snow contains enormous amounts of water. During the spring season, the land is frozen. When the land is frozen, it disallows water from melting snow to seep into the ground. This water accumulates on the surface and causes floods.
- Deforestation Urban development causes deforestation. There are no natural barriers to hold water and thus floods happen.
- Earthquakes An Earthquake can cause tsunamis which cause a rapid excursion of water from the middle of the sea and flooding into land.
