Flooding can have devastating effects on local communities. How can we help protect vulnerable populations from flooding? Join us on Thursday 12 December from 14:00 – 15:00 CET for an online session, where we’ll look at early warning systems and flood evacuation planning. During the online session, we’ll hear from experiences in Durban, South Africa, and Quelimane, Mozambique.

Early Warning Systems and Flood Evacuation Planning

Early Warning Systems and Flood Evacuation Planning are critical to saving lives, reducing damages, and building community resilience against flooding, especially in the face of growing climate risks. Using two case studies, we will explore how these tools are implemented in Durban, South Africa, and Quelimane, Mozambique, highlighting how EWS can be used to predict stormwater-related floods and how forecasting data can be transformed into actionable plans on the ground to protect vulnerable communities.  

Flood Early Warning System in Durban, South Africa   

For over a decade, the eThekwini Municipality and Deltares have collaborated to develop a Flood Early Warning System for Durban. This innovative system combines extensive observational data with operational forecasts to address both inland and coastal flooding, leveraging state-of-the-art modeling tools. In this presentation, we will highlight key features of the system and explore its practical applications in daily operations. 

Flood evacuation planning in Quelimane, Mozambique:  

Integrating dynamic flood mapping with road network analyses and population maps, helps identify vulnerable areas and populations. Focusing on a case study in Mozambique, this presentation will demonstrate how such analyses can be of use before, during and after an extreme event, for example when determining an evacuation plan. 

Speakers and participants

After the presentations, there will be time for an interactive Q&A with the speakers.  Speakers during the event include:

• Roel de Goede, expert modelling compound flooding and morphodynamics at Deltares (moderator)
• Kemira Naidoo, senior civil engineer at the Coastal, Stormwater and Catchment Management Department, Durban, South Africa
• Cameron Gabin, civil engineer, Coastal, Stormwater and Catchment Management Department, eThekwini Municipality, South Africa
• Sanele Nkala, expert coastal infrastructure and stormwater systems, Coastal, Stormwater, and Catchment Management Department, eThekwini Municipality, South Africa
• Siphesihle Mtshali, civil engineer, Coastal, Stormwater and Catchment Management Department, eThekwini Municipality, South Africa
• Lieke Meijer, expert in the field of extreme weather impacts, Deltares