Three Forces That Make Floods Destructive

A raging torrent of water is anything but good. Floods cost homeowners and businesses billions each year, adding up every time a calamity or burst pipe occurs, from drenched documents to mold growth. However, a flood’s destructive physics aren’t widely understood. With enough speed, it can bust a hole through your wall and add more headaches for you to deal with.

Craig Rogers, catastrophe technical manager for Rimkus Consulting, explains that there are at least three kinds of loads involved in floods. These are:

●     Hydrostatic Load – The pressure exerted by lateral and vertical forces against a surface pushes it to the point of deformity. This is why swimming pools are rarely drained; without water inside the pool, there’s no stopping hydrostatic load from popping it right out of the ground.

●     Hydrodynamic Load – The pressure exerted by the lateral force of the moving floodwater can contribute to further structural damage. This is usually the active force inflicting immediate damage to the structure during a flood. Hydrodynamic load increases with the flood’s velocity.

●     Impact Load – Like hydrodynamic load, impact loads are also immediate lateral forces. However, they’re more associated with waves and storm surges, as well as debris carried by the flood. It’s safe to say that impact loads create the most damage due to their overwhelming force.

Those involved in construction and flood restoration work take these loads into account, especially in an area that experiences them often, to help buildings fare better should a flood hit again.