HR: 0800h
AN: H21E-0805    [Abstracts]
TI: Enhanced NEXRAD Radar-based Flood Warning System with Hydraulic Prediction Feature: Floodplain Map Library (FPML)
AU: * Fang, Z
EM: nickfang@rice.edu
AF: Rice University Civil and Environ. Engr.MS317, 6100 Main St., Housotn, TX 77005, United States
AU: Bedient, P B
EM: bedient@rice.edu
AF: Rice University Civil and Environ. Engr.MS317, 6100 Main St., Housotn, TX 77005, United States
AB: Houston is facing flood problems of a serious nature. Until more permanent solutions are found accurate and timely, early warning flood systems are vitally needed to provide the early warnings that public and private entities are demanding. The current Rice University/TMC Flood Alert System (FAS2) began to utilize higher-resolutioned Level II NEXRAD radar data (1 x 1 km) that is calibrated against local rain gauges by the end of 2004, with the real-time hydrologic model (RTHEC-1) to provide important data for predicting flood levels along Brays Bayou. The finer resolution of Level II radar rainfall data provides significantly greater details with respect to the spatial variability of rainfall. FAS2 has been tested for more than 30 events including three recent events in 2006 season with excellent performance. It has been found from 2006 season that the average difference in peak flows is 8.76%; the average difference in terms of volumes is 13.70%. The floodplain map library (FPML) as a new hydraulic prediction tool has been developed based on the radar- based FAS2 and is being integrated into FAS2 to provide inundations maps in near real time. The development of FPML includes three stages: designing rainfall based on historical rainfall data over the watershed, delineating 99 maps based on design rainfalls, and designing algorithm to link real-time NEXRAD radar rainfall to appropriate maps. The enhance system can be a prototype for other flood-prone areas along the Gulf coast, and will improve emergency personnel's ability to initiate evacuation strategies at many levels.
DE: 1800 HYDROLOGY
DE: 1820 Floodplain dynamics
DE: 1821 Floods
DE: 1847 Modeling
DE: 1853 Precipitation-radar
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting