Curious About Floods

PODCAST 245: CURIOUS ABOUT FLOODS

RELEASE DATE: SUNDAY, JUNE 11TH, 2023

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST.  OVER THE YEARS, WE HAVE DONE A FEW EPISODES ON NATURAL DISASTERS.  A NATURAL DISASTER IS A VIOLENT EVENT THAT HUMANS CAN’T CONTROL.  INSTEAD OF BEING CONTROLLED BY HUMANS, THEY ARE CONTROLLED BY THE FORCES OF NATURE.  NATURAL DISASTERS CAN SOMETIMES RESULT IN THE LOSS OF LIFE, INJURY TO PEOPLE AND ANIMALS, AS WELL AS DAMAGE TO PROPERTY.  EXAMPLES OF NATURAL DISASTERS WE’VE COVERED IN THE PODCAST ARE EARTHQUAKES, VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS, WILDFIRES, TORNADOS, AND HURRICANES.  ALTHOUGH NATURAL DISASTERS CAN STRIKE IN LOTS OF DIFFERENT PLACES, YOU ARE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE CERTAIN NATURAL DISASTERS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD.  FOR EXAMPLE, HERE IN NEW JERSEY WHERE WE LIVE, WE ARE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE A HURRICANE OR A WILDFIRE THAN WE ARE TO EXPERIENCE AN EARTHQUAKE OR ESPECIALLY A VOLCANIC ERUPTION.  WE ARE GOING TO COVER ANOTHER NATURAL DISASTER TODAY THAT CAN IMPACT ANYONE, ANYWHERE ON EARTH, NO MATTER WHERE YOU LIVE.     

O:  MAILBAG!

D:  MAILBAG!

“HELLO JACOB AND OLIVIA!  MY NAME IS WOLFIE AND I AM 4 YEARS OLD AND LIVE IN ASHLAND, OREGON.  MY 2 YEAR OLD SISTER MINNIE, MOMMY YASMIN, AND DADDY ALEX LOVE LISTENING TO YOUR PODCAST IN THE CAR ON THE WAY TO SCHOOL, SWIM CLASS, OR A LONG ROAD TRIP!  I AM CURIOUS ABOUT FLOODS AND TSUNAMIS, AND WOULD LOVE TO LEARN ABOUT THE DIFFERENT TYPES!  CAN ANY ANIMALS LIVE IN A FLOOD OR TSUNAMI?  THANK YOU!

• WOLFIE”

O:  THANKS FOR THE INCREDIBLE EMAIL, WOLFIE.  WE CAN’T WAIT TO GET CURIOUS ABOUT FLOODS FOR YOU THIS WEEK.  

D:  IT IS ESTIMATED THAT ABOUT 40 MILLION PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED BY FLOODS EACH AND EVERY YEAR.  EVEN THOUGH FLOODING CAN TAKE PLACE JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE, THERE ARE SOME PLACES THAT ARE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE FLOODS THAN OTHERS.

O:  OF THE 40 MILLION PEOPLE AFFECTED BY FLOODS YEARLY, OVER 11 MILLION OF THEM ARE FROM A SINGLE COUNTRY.  THAT’S MORE THAN A QUARTER OF THE TOTAL WORLD FLOODING IN A SINGLE COUNTRY!  THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK IS, WHICH COUNTRY HAS MORE PEOPLE IMPACTED BY FLOODS THAN ANY OTHER?

D:  WHILE YOU’RE GOING THROUGH THE LIST OF 195 COUNTRIES IN YOUR HEAD TRYING TO COME UP WITH THE ANSWER, LET’S LEARN WHAT FLOODS ARE AND HOW THEY HAPPEN.

O:  A FLOOD IS WHEN THERE IS A RISE IN WATER LEVEL AND THE WATER HAS NOWHERE TO GO.  WHEN FLOODS HAPPEN, THE WATER CAN BE SHALLOW, LIKE JUST A FEW INCHES DEEP, BUT THE WATER CAN ALSO BE VERY DEEP, MEASURING MANY FEET DEEP.  FLOOD WATER IS VERY POWERFUL AND DANGEROUS.  FLOODS CAN TAKE DAYS TO DEVELOP, BUT THEY ARE ALSO CAPABLE OF DEVELOPING IN JUST MINUTES IN THE RIGHT CONDITIONS.

D:  FLOODS HURT MORE PEOPLE AND PROPERTY THAN ANY OTHER TYPE OF NATURAL DISASTER.  MANY PEOPLE GET HURT BY FLOODS WHEN TRYING TO WALK OR DRIVE THROUGH A FLOODED AREA.    

O:  JUST SIX INCHES OF WATER IS GOOD ENOUGH TO MAKE SOMEONE LOSE THEIR BALANCE.  WHEN SEEING A FLOODED AREA, IT’S HARD TO TELL EXACTLY HOW DEEP THE WATER IS.  DROWNING IS NOT THE ONLY RISK WHEN ENTERING A FLOODED AREA.  FLOOD WATER ALSO MIGHT BE CONTAMINATED AND CONTAIN HARMFUL DEBRIS.  IN OTHER WORDS, FLOODS WILL PICK UP JUST ABOUT ANYTHING IN IT’S PATH, INCLUDING THINGS THAT COULD BE HARMFUL FOR HUMANS TO TOUCH.

D:  AND IF YOU’RE IN A CAR, THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT IT’S SAFE TO DRIVE THROUGH A FLOODED AREA.  JUST A FOOT OF WATER IS GOOD ENOUGH TO CARRY AWAY SOME SMALLER CARS, AND ALMOST ANY CAR CAN BE SWEPT AWAY BY JUST TWO FEET OF WATER.  

O:  THERE ARE LOTS OF REASONS WHY FLOODING MIGHT OCCUR.  THE MOST COMMON IS HEAVY RAIN.  WHEN LOTS OF RAIN FALLS IN A CERTAIN AREA, THE LAND MAY BECOME SATURATED, WHICH MAKES IT HARDER FOR THE WATER TO DRAIN.  WHEN THE WATER CAN’T DRAIN, IT JUST RISES AND RISES.  

D:  FLOODING CAN ALSO HAPPEN WHEN RIVERS OVERFLOW.  IF YOU LIVE NEAR A RIVER, AND AREAS UPSTREAM GET LOTS OF RAIN, IT CAN CAUSE THE RIVER TO OVERFLOW IN YOUR AREA.  RIVER FLOODS ARE ALSO CAPABLE OF CONTAMINATING THE DRINKING WATER, AND ALSO CAUSING THINGS LIKE LANDSLIDES OR SINKHOLES.    

O:  FLOODING CAN TAKE PLACE IF A DAM BREAKS OR IS DAMAGED.  A DAM IS A STRUCTURE THAT IS BUILT ACROSS A STREAM OR A RIVER, AND IT IS DESIGNED TO HOLD WATER BACK AND KEEP IT AWAY FROM HOMES.  UNFORTUNATELY, MANY OF THE DAMS HERE IN THE UNITED STATES WERE BUILT A LONG TIME AGO.  AS THEY GET OLDER, IT BECOMES MORE AND MORE LIKELY THAT THEY MIGHT GET DAMAGED, RELEASING THE WATER THEY WERE DESIGNED TO HOLD.  

D:  FLOODING CAN ALSO TAKE PLACE DUE TO SNOWMELT.  IF YOU GET LOTS OF SNOW, AND THEN SUDDENLY THERE IS A NICE WARM DAY AND ALL OF THAT SNOW MELTS, IT WILL TURN INTO WATER, AND FLOODING CAN RESULT.  SNOWMELT CAN LEAD TO FLOODING, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE LIVING CLOSE TO LAKES OR RIVERS.  

O:  THE MOST DANGEROUS TYPE OF FLOOD IS CALLED A FLASH FLOOD.  FLASH FLOODS USUALLY HAPPEN DUE TO VERY HEAVY RAIN.  WHAT MAKES THEM SO DANGEROUS IS THAT THEY HAPPEN SUDDENLY, SO PEOPLE DON’T HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PREPARE FOR THEM.  BY DEFINITION, FLASH FLOODS HAPPEN WITHIN 6 HOURS OF A HEAVY RAINFALL.  

D:  JUST A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, A HISTORIC FLASH FLOOD OCCURRED IN A PLACE WHERE ME AND OLIVIA HAVE A FEW FRIENDS.

O:  ON APRIL 12TH AND 13TH, FLASH FLOODING TOOK PLACE IN FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA.  THE FLOODING HAPPENED BECAUSE FORT LAUDERDALE GOT AN INCREDIBLE 25.6 INCHES OF RAIN IN JUST 12 HOURS.  

D:  ON APRIL 10TH, TWO DAYS BEFORE THE FLOOD, THE WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER CALLED FOR A MARGINAL RISK OF FLASH FLOODING IN THE AREA.  THE NEXT DAY, THEY UPGRADED THE RISK TO SLIGHT RISK.  THEY HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS COMING.  AT 7:58 PM THE FOLLOWING DAY, THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAD ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY DUE TO THE HEAVY RAIN THAT WAS BATTERING THE AREA.  

O:  IT IS PREDICTED THAT THE FLASH FLOODING IN FORT LAUDERDALE DID OVER $2 MILLION IN PROPERTY DAMAGE.  THE AIRPORT WAS EVEN CLOSED FOR ALMOST TWO FULL DAYS, CANCELLING 1,119 FLIGHTS, AFFECTING 64,000 PASSENGERS.  FOUR OF THOSE PASSENGERS WERE FRIENDS OF OURS, THAT HAD TO DRIVE UP FROM FLORIDA AT THE END OF SPRING BREAK BECAUSE THEIR FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED.  

D:  WHEN THERE IS THE RISK FOR A FLASH FLOOD, THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANNOUNCES A FLASH FLOOD WATCH.  THAT MEANS THAT CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR A FLASH FLOOD.

O:  EVEN MORE SERIOUS IS A FLASH FLOOD WARNING, WHICH MEANS THAT A FLASH FLOOD IS HAPPENING OR IS GOING TO HAPPEN VERY SOON.

D:  WHEN FLASH FLOOD WATCHES AND WARNING ARE ANNOUNCED, THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALSO REMINDS PEOPLE TO “TURN AROUND AND DON’T DROWN”.  IT IS A VERY BAD IDEA TO THINK YOU CAN MAKE IT ACROSS FLOOD WATERS BY FOOT OR BY CAR SAFELY.  LIKE WE SAID EARLIER, IT’S VERY HARD TO PREDICT HOW DEEP FLOOD WATERS ARE, AND THEY ARE A LOT HARDER TO MOVE THROUGH THAN OTHER WATER, LIKE WATER IN A BATHTUB OR SWIMMING POOL THAT IS A LOT CALMER. 

O:  AND, EVEN IF YOU THINK FLOOD WATERS ARE SHALLOW, THERE ARE LOTS OF POTENTIAL DANGERS LURKING IN FLOOD WATER THAT SHOULD BE AVOIDED.

D:  FLOODWATER CAN CONTAIN DOWNED POWER LINES, MEANING THAT A PERSON CAN GET ELECTROCUTED BY WALKING INTO THE FLOOD WATER.  IT CAN ALSO HAVE OBJECTS THAT CAN HURT PEOPLE , SUCH AS WOOD, METAL, ROCKS, SHARP OBJECTS, AND DEBRIS.  THERE CAN ALSO BE WILD OR STRAY ANIMALS IN FLOOD WATER, LIKE SNAKES OR RODENTS THAT YOU WOULD WANT TO AVOID.  OKAY OLIVIA, LET’S ANSWER THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK.  WHICH COUNTRY HAS MORE PEOPLE IMPACTED BY FLOODS THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY?

O:  THE COUNTRY THAT HAS THE MOST FLOODING IS PAKISTAN.  JUST LAST YEAR, PAKISTAN HAD IT’S WORST FLOODING IN A VERY LONG TIME.  ONE-THIRD OF THE ENTIRE COUNTRY OF PAKISTAN WAS UNDER WATER IN AUGUST OF LAST YEAR, AFFECTING 30 MILLION PEOPLE.  THE BIGGEST REASON FOR THE HISTORIC FLOODS IS THAT PAKISTAN RECEIVED 780% MORE RAINFALL THAN AN AVERAGE YEAR.  

D:  THE FLOODING IN PAKISTAN LAST YEAR DAMAGED ALMOST A MILLION HOMES, 2,000 MILES OF ROADS, AND 150 BRIDGES.  THE BIGGEST REASONS FOR THE FLOODING WAS AN UNUSUALLY WET MONSOON SEASON AND THE MELTING OF GLACIERS DUE TO A SEVERE HEAT WAVE.  PAKISTAN GETS A LOT OF RAINFALL, BUT MOST OF THAT RAINFALL COMES DURING MONSOON SEASON, WHICH GENERALLY LASTS FROM APRIL 15TH THROUGH JULY 15TH, ALTHOUGH IT COULD LINGER INTO AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER AS WELL.  IN 2022, LARGE PARTS OF PAKISTAN RECEIVED MORE RAINFALL DURING THE MONSOON SEASON THAN IN ANY PREVIOUS YEAR SINCE RECORDS STARTED BEING KEPT.  TODAY, MORE THAN SIX MONTHS AFTER THE EVENTS THAT LED TO THE FLOODING IN PAKISTAN, MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN PAKISTAN STILL DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO SAFE DRINKING WATER.  WE HOPE THIS YEAR BRINGS A MORE MANAGEABLE MONSOON SEASON TO THE PEOPLE OF PAKISTAN.  WELL, THAT’S A WRAP FOR THIS WEEK’S EPISODE.

O:  245 - FLOODS.

D:  GREAT JOB OLIVIA, AND GREAT JOB WOLFIE, FOR AN EPISODE TOPIC SUGGESTION THAT REMINDS US OF THE POWER OF WATER.  BEFORE WE GO, WE HAVE AN AMAZING LISTENER TO THANK.

O:  THANK YOU TO OUR NEWEST PATREON SUPPORTER, RONAN R.

D:  A BIG THANKS TO RONAN FOR YOU SUPPORT.  JOIN US NEXT WEEK, WHEN WE GET CURIOUS ABOUT FOSSILS FOR LISTENERS IN CHINA, GERMANY, AND VIETNAM.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.