What are the three types of flooding?
Riverine flooding, coastal flooding, flash flooding
What are mitigation / prevention measures for floods?
CHILL - C
Climate change action
Healthcare preparedness
Infrastructure
Land use planning / building controls - regulating land use and development to ensure flood hazard and risk are appropriately managed, flood-proofing dwellings
Landscape management - levees, floodways, retention basins; flood mapping
Community resilience - flood warning systems
What are planning / preparedness measures?
P - FLEMISH
- Plans - develop, test; TEMA flood sub-plans; regional and municipal plans
Forecasting / risk assessment - heavy rain, king tides, tsunami, damn failure, snow melt, La Nina; BOM - riverine flood risk, severe weather and thunderstorm warning, flood watch, flood warnings
Leadership/governance
Evacuation - ensure centres allocated, available
M - Resources - PPE,
Information / comms - flood watch, flood warnings; testing of messages, channels
Society - preparedness; understanding risk
Health system - preparedness; capacity, surge response, education, training
Who is the lead agency in flood response?
SES
Who regulates, monitors and manages water quality?
DH regulates and monitors water quality.
TasWater is the advisory agency and management authority for water supply contamination and disruption.
Fill in the SAWFISH acronym for floods?
Safety - drowning, injuries (debris, MVA), hypothermia, electrocution, animal bites
Air - NA
Water - contamination e.g. human/livestock/household waste; farm/industrial chemicals; harmful algal blooms; contamination of drinking water supply e.g. E. coli, Hep A, Giardia. Boil alerts, bottled water.
Food - contamination/spoiling (e.g. if refrigeration impacted); crops/livestock loss
Insects/infection - VBDs (e.g. RRV, MVEV, JEV, BFV); zoonoses e.g. leptosporosis - cuts/abrasions, contaminated water/soil/mud. Soil-borne pathogens - tetanus, melioidosis; mould - respiratory effects; wound infections - staph/strep/tetanus
Sanitation / hygiene - wastewater; health promotion
Healthcare - disrupted access to medication, health services, evacuation consequences; psychological distress / trauma
What structural measures are used in flood mitigation?
- Levees
- Floodways
- Retention basins
- Flood-proofing of dwellings
What is the role of land use planning in flood management?
Regulating land use and development to ensure flood hazard and risk are considered and managed
What is the Total flood warning system?
Data → forecast → modelling → alert → response
Name the agency involved in flood prediction.
- BOM (Bureau of Meteorology)
- SES
What are some causes of flooding?
- Heavy rainfalls
- King tides
- Tsunami
- Dam failure
- Snowmelt
- La Niña
What is the lead agency for flood mitigation in Tas?
Tas SES
What are some acute hazards related to flooding?
- Drowning
- Injuries (debris, MVAs)
- Hypothermia
- Electrocution
- Animal bites
What complications can arise from injuries during a flood?
Wound infections (Staph, Strep, tetanus)
What types of communicable diseases can increase due to flooding?
- Water (contaminated) - E.coli, HepA, others
- Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) - RRV, BFV, MVEV, JEV
- Zoonoses e.g. leptospirosis
- Soil-borne pathogens - tetanus, meliodosis
- Skin pathogens (wounds) -staph/strep/tetanus
Fill in the blank: Floodwaters are often contaminated with _______.
[human/livestock waste, household waste, farm/industrial chemicals]
Who are considered risk groups during flooding?
- Infants/children
- Elderly
- Immobile
- Chronic health conditions
- Isolated properties
- Unprepared property owners
What type of risk communication messages should be provided during flooding?
- Sanitation
- Hand hygiene
- IPC
- Vector control measures / bite prevention
- Food and water safety advice - avoid floodwater, wash after any contact
- Access to essential medicines, healthcare
