Flood early warning in France
Jean-Michel Tanguy and Jean-Marie Carriere.Ministere de l'ecologie et du developpement durable.
SCHAPI, Toulouse.
Monday, December 15, 15:00 p.m. CERFACS Conference Room
Abstract
Present situation : A number of territorial State services are in charge of following the most critical catchments and rivers, going from "slow response" rivers to those subject to very rapid water level rising. When pre-alert or alert levels are reached, information bulletins are sent to civil safety State authorities. The bulletins are then broadcast to the mayors of the cities concerned by the event, and all necessary assistance to the population is provided. To fulfil their missions, the Flood Alert Services have access to discharge and water levels real-time measurement networks. Météo-France's vigilance map and other special bulletins are used as an early warning for Flood Alert Services to get prepared in case of heavy rainfall forecast. This system has been working for a long time. Although it proved to be very useful, it was pointed out from experience that the system could be improved in several ways.
Towards a prediction and vigilance system To overcome existing weaknesses, a national reorganization was decided with the objective of moving from a flood follow-up and alert system to a flood forecast and prediction system working continuously. This reorganization is based on two components:
Implementation of 22 Flood Prediction Services in lieu of the existing 54 Flood Alert Services.
Creation of a national hydro-meteorological service called Central Hydro-meteorological Service for Flood Prediction Support (CHSFPS).
The development of flood forecast will rely on existing software, work or initiatives in the Flood Alert Services and the research community. A number of tools exist already, some fully operational or needing ergonomics improvements, others still needing refinements but promising. To promote R&D with operational perspectives, a scientific steering committee of the CHSFPS has been created. It includes experts from the French hydrometeorological community and from other countries.
The presentation will address the challenge of implementing this new system and the state of the art of flood prediction.
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