A 360-degree view of the response to flood risk

As major flooding events around the world show, the impact of flooding on the built environment can cause widespread chaos. These flood events form part of a wider pattern of increasing flood frequency coupled with increased vulnerability of the built environment to flood hazard. Flood risk can unite or divide communities and the responses to potential risk can range from denial to perfect adaptation.

Drawing on the experience of communities and experts, Flood Hazards: Impacts and Responses for the Built Environment offers guidance on managing urban flooding and flood risk. It brings together a diversity of viewpoints and experiences on flood impacts and responses from leading academics, flood restoration specialists, emergency responders, architects, planning consultants, insurers, policymakers, and community representatives. By including the perspective of the community and the views of households and businesses at risk, this volume makes a unique contribution to the literature on flood management.

The chapter organization loosely corresponds to the phases of the disaster management cycle, covering emergency preparation and response; recovery, repair, and reconstruction; and mitigation and adaptation. Contributors examine the types of impacts and discuss forecasting and emergency warning. They describe processes and good practice in recovery of flood-damaged property from the perspectives of the insurance industry, restorers, and loss adjusters. The book also deals with business continuity, land-use planning, property-level and infrastructure protection, and urban drainage, looking at the regulation and design of the built environment as one way to reduce risk. A section on community response to flooding sheds light on the experiences of flood-affected families.

Written for students, practitioners, and researchers in flood risk management, as well as for professionals who may encounter flood-related issues in the course of their work, this cross-disciplinary book makes a valuable contribution towards designing a future built environment that is more resilient to flood risk.