A flood is an overflow of water that submerges land that is usually dry. Floods can have numerous causes such as, a river or stream overflowing its banks, excessive rain, a ruptured dam or levee, and even rapid ice melting in the mountains. All of the above will lead the water to move onto the adjacent piece of land known as a floodplain. Coastal flooding, on the other hand, occurs when a large storm or tsunami causes the sea to surge inland. Since floods take anywhere from a couple of hours and even days to develop, residents are able to evacuate on time and are warned by officials early before the flooding takes place. Yet, there are also flash floods that generate very quickly and are very dangerous since they occur with little to no warning. Over recent decades, possibly due to climate change, floods have been occurring more often and have caused more damage than ever before. The problems with these floods are the amount of destruction they cause, any poorly built structures will be demolished and even well built structures can be demolished due to the water seeking into the buildings foundations and dragging dirt from under it. Bridges, houses, trees, cars, and people can easily be carried off by the force of this water. Even after a flood recedes, the outcome is devastating, the ground is left with silt and mud. Both the water and landscape can be contaminated with hazardous material, such as sharp debris, pesticides, untreated sewage and even fuel. Mold will overwhelm the water soaked structures. The residents of the flooded areas are left with no power and no clean water, which can cause them to get many waterborne diseases such as typhoid or cholera. Most flood destruction is attributed to humans wanting to live close to the water and in turn taking up the floodplain space used to keep floods from spreading into villages, towns, and cities. Floods are a very natural entity and have helped agriculture throughout the history of the world due to fertile floodplains. But if humans live on these floodplains then the floodplains can no longer act as buffers to stop the flood from happening, therefore the flood spreads to more populated areas. The biggest solution would be to not build on flood plains and let the flood plains do all of the work, yet new buildings are built on these plains every year, leaving the people who inhabit them at risk.
