Earthquakes and soil liquefaction in flood stories of the ancient Near East

Flood stories in the Hebrew Bible and the Koran appear to be derived from earlier flood stories like those in the Gilgamesh Epic and still earlier in the Atrahasis. All would have their source from floods of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

The Gilgamesh Epic magnifies the catastrophe by having the flood begin with winds, lightning, and a shattering of the earth, or earthquake. Elsewhere in Gilgamesh, an earthquake can be shown to have produced pits and chasms along with gushing of water. It is commonly observed that earthquake shaking causes water to gush from the ground and leaves pits and open fissures. The process is known as soil liquefaction. Earthquake is also a possible explanation for the verse “all the fountains of the great deep (were) broken up” that began the Flood in Genesis. Traditionally, the “great deep” was the ocean bottom. A more recent translation substitutes “burst” for “broken up” in describing the fountains, suggesting that they erupted at the ground surface and were caused by an earthquake with soil liquefaction. Another relation between soil liquefaction and the Flood is found in the Koran where the Flood starts when “water gushed forth from the oven”. Soil liquefaction observed erupting preferentially into houses during an earthquake provides a logical interpretation if the oven is seen as a tiny house. A case can be made that earthquakes with soil liquefaction are embedded in all of these flood stories.     

Italian Diluvianism and antidiluvianism within the international arena: the great debate that lasted more than six centuries

As early as the thirteenth century naturalists of the Italian panorama began to look for a possible explanation for fossils found on emerged land. From the beginning, they tended quite naturally to resort to a catastrophic phenomenon, which found a direct ‘confirmation’ in the Holy Scriptures: the Great Flood. As an element found in numerous peoples, from the Babylonians, to ancient Egypt and the Chinese culture, the Flood became for a long time the only process able to explain the presence of marine fossils on the highest mountains, in a period dominated by a static concept of planet Earth. On the Italian scene, the supporters of the Flood were quite numerous, but equally numerous were the authors who brought evidence against the Deluge hypothesis, preferring a long stationing of the sea in places where the fossils are found today. An influential part of the second group is represented by the glorious Tuscan school that, starting from Boccaccio, includes prominent figures as Leonardo da Vinci, Baldassarri, Bastiani, Giovanni Targioni Tozzetti, Caluri, and Matani. In any case, the aspect that characterizes the majority of Italian authors from both the two interpretative factions, is a predilection to the study of deposits and fossils directly in the field, rather than the construction of ‘big systems’ simply based on the authority of sacred texts or other ancient authors.     

The youngest big impact on Earth deduced from geological and historical evidence

The comparison of events that followed the great impact at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary with those contained within the Flood myths suggests an analogous cosmic cause. This paper proposes that there is geological evidence to support this thesis which is also indicated by a careful analysis of the natural phenomena described in Flood traditions. The time, the sites, the cause, the detailed course of the events and the consequences of this catastrophe can hope to be reconstructed.     

Determination of the distribution of flood forecasting error

Natural Hazards - Flood forecasting plays an essential role in enhancing the safety of residents downstream and preventing or reducing economic losses. One critical issue in flood risk assessment...     

Six comments on the Bangladesh Flood Action Plan

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Six comments on the Bangladesh Flood Action Plan     

吉林省水旱灾害规律分析

水旱灾害在自然灾害中占有重大比重，对人类危害极大，正确认识水旱灾害发生的规律与特点，对防治与减轻自然灾害有着重要作用。对吉林省水旱灾害的危害及其发生规律和特点进行了分析。     

Integration of multi-parametric fuzzy analytic hierarchy process and GIS along the UNESCO World Heritage: a flood hazard index,Mombasa County,Kenya

Natural Hazards - Flood is a natural hazard affecting human life and ecosystem globally causing catastrophic disasters. Most flood-induced socioeconomic losses are exacerbated by unabated urban...     

From flood risk mapping toward reducing vulnerability: the case of Addis Ababa

Natural Hazards - Flood risk maps for the built environment can be obtained by integrating geo-spatial information on hazard, vulnerability and exposure. They provide precious support for strategic...     

考虑区间正负入流量的自适应洪水预报模型

根据甘肃省气候条件和地理环境十分复杂，河流站网密度低，面对上下游区间有正负入流量且没有观测资料，以水量平衡原理为基础的河道洪水演算无法进行的实际情况，立足于利用现有上下游水站的水情信息，在传统系统水模型和河道汇流理论有关原理、方法的基础上，提出了考虑区间正负入流量的自适应洪水预报模型，改进了现行系统输入～输出水量不平衡关系，解决了甘肃省河流洪水过程无法预报的问题。具有十分广阔的应用前景。     

Geo-spatial assessment of community vulnerability to flood along the Ravi River,Ravi Town,Lahore, Pakistan

Natural Hazards - Pakistan is exposed to hydro-meteorological and geological hazards. Flood is one of the hydro-meteorological hazards, and so far 25 major floods have occurred in Indus River...     

Urban flooding in Britain: an approach to comparing ancient and contemporary flood exposure

Natural Hazards - Using modified UK Environment Agency Flood Estimation Handbook techniques, inundation extent and likely flood hydrographs for 0.1% probability annual return periods are compared...     

基于投影寻踪和粒子群优化算法的洪水分类研究

洪水分类实际上是洪水强度大小辨别的优化问题。洪水分类不仅影响着水库的实时调度，而且也影响着洪水灾害危险评估。对利用降水预报进行洪水资源利用的水库来说，洪水分类对水库实时调度规则的建立有着重要的作用。因此，洪水分类是一个重要的理论和实践问题。本文以长江三峡水库代表性水文站——宜昌站为研究对象．基于投影寻踪方法建立了洪水分类的优化模型，并利用粒子群优化算法对所建模型进行求解。结果表明了投影寻踪方法和粒子群优化算法在洪水分类研究中的有效性和合理性．     

Activity maps of multi-source mudslides from the Daunia Apennines (Apulia,southern Italy)

Natural Hazards - Flooding poses a serious public health hazard throughout the world. Flood modeling is an important tool for emergency preparedness and response, but some common methods require a...     

A GIS-based tool for flood damage assessment and delineation of a methodology for future risk assessment: case study for Annotto Bay,Jamaica

Natural Hazards - Flood risk assessments and damage estimations form integral parts of the disaster risk management in Jamaica, owing its vulnerability to hydrometeorological hazards. Although...     

The importance of data structure and nonlinearities in estimating climate impacts on outdoor recreation

Natural Hazards - Flood is a recurrent and crucial natural phenomenon affecting almost the entire planet. It is a critical problem that causes crop destruction, destruction to the population, loss...     

Assessment of potential outburst floods from the Tsho Rolpa glacial lake in Nepal

Flood and sediment disasters caused by glacial lake outbursts have occurred frequently in recent years in the Himalayas of Nepal. Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) can cause catastrophic flooding in downstream areas with serious damage to lives and property. It is thus important to investigate outburst floods from potentially dangerous glacial lakes. In this study, the characteristics of potential outburst floods from the Tsho Rolpa glacial lake due to two types of moraine dam failure caused by seepage flow or water overtopping were analyzed with various scenarios by using integrated modeling system of three numerical models: (1) the flow and bed-surface erosion model, (2) the seepage model and (3) the slope stability model. Flood inundation areas were also identified by using the numerical model of the flow and moraine dam failure and geographical information system tools. Possible threats and damages due to the potential GLOF events from the lake were also analyzed based on numerical results, flood inundation maps and field investigations.     

Flood hazard management in the United States and the National Flood Insurance Program

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) both provides flood insurance to floodplain occupants and encourages local communities to adopt floodplain land-use regulations. As well as providing the core of the federal non-structural flood hazard management effort, the NFIP is a central element in both state and local activities. A major issue influencing the success of the NFIP in curbing flood damages is its treatment of properties built before the adoption of floodplain regulations. The potential for using the NFIP to encourage floodproofing and influence post-flood hazard mitigation must be fully explored.     

公元1180和1181年浙江金华地区梅汛期降水的重建

利用古代日记资料发掘历史气候信息是重建古气候的重要方法。根据南宋吕祖谦的《庚子辛丑日记》记录的金华(婺州)公元1180年和1181年5—6月份逐日天气记录,利用金华1954—2012年实测月雨量和雨日资料的统计规律,重建了1180年和1181年金华地区5—6月份梅汛期雨量,并结合《日记》反映的天气过程,确定了这2年金华的出入梅时间,结果表明1180年和1181年入梅较现代偏早,1180年5—6月份雨量比现代偏小,梅雨期略偏短,1181年则雨量偏大,梅雨期明显偏长。上述结论对这2年历史文献记载的旱涝灾情提供了直观的有力佐证。     

贵州福泉市双眼井泉小流域流量估算及排洪方案建议

贵州双眼井泉小流域为一地表分水岭与地下分水岭不闭合的岩溶峰丛洼地小流域。双眼井泉主要通过落水洞、溶蚀裂隙接受大气降水直接补给,水量动态变化较大,幅度从枯季的0.2L/s到雨季的35.5L/s不等,最突出的是2007年暴雨期间水量骤增,曾导致流域内磷石膏堆场子坝溃坝。为解决该流域防洪工程设计问题,本文在岩溶水文地质调查分析的基础上,提出了在缺少长观资料的情况下,以隔水层作为双眼井泉地下汇水边界、以当地丰水期最大径流模数计算得到的流量27.5L/s再乘上相应的安全系数得到的流量作为防洪工程过水断面设计依据,并提出了在双眼井冲沟口940m高程处新建一座拦水坝的排洪方案。经3年多的实践检验,设计流量计算合理,方案制定科学,工程运营安全。      

长江防洪决策支持系统——决策方案管理系统

在分析防洪决策特点的基础上,以长江防洪决策支持系统为例,设计开发了具有生成新方案、删除旧方案、选择方案、选择模型、设置模型参数、运行模型、查询显示运行结果、给出方案描述、比较多种方案等功能的防洪决策方案管理系统(DCMS,Decision Case Management System),并对实现这一系统的技术途径作了描述.