This is a research report concerning the Yangtze river flooding in 1998, which led to extreme impacts on its home country and great actions of the Chinese government. Superimposed image 12(1), 26–37. It was aimed at both generating power and reining in the ferocious Yangtze, the cause of many terrible floods in Chinese history. Perry, A. H.: 1981 Environmental Hazards in the British Isles, George Allen & Unwin, London, 191 pp. The main cause of the flood was due to above average rainfall in the region for several months before and during the summer of 1998. The flood was caused by unusually high precipitation between June and August (670 mm), due to a strong El Niño event. El Nino effect in 1998 made rain last an extra month. The core study area is located in the most strikingly meandering and complex stream network section of the middle Yangtze River (Fig. Fang, J.: 1991, A pilot study on the impact of post-glacial sea-level rise on the middle and lower reaches of the Changjiang River, Acta Geographica Sinica Environmental Research Centre, Department of Geography, University of Durham, Durham, DH1 3LE, U.K, The State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, P. R. China, You can also search for this author in This image was acquired on 01 August 1998 over Huarong (200km south-west of Wuhan), and the Yangtze River. Between the actual floods and the following famine and disease, up to 4 million people died, making it the deadliest natural disaster in recorded history. 76-83 (in Chinese). Hosking, J. R. M. and Wallis, J. R.: 1997 Regional Frequency Analysis: An Approach Based on L-Moments, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Indeed, after a strong El Niño in 1998, similar floods struck the Yangtze River Basin, causing $44 billion in damage and 3,656 deaths. Therefore, stopping floods may be changed as flood control or flood protection. Subscription will auto renew annually. Physical Causes. In 1998, catastrophic floods occurred in the whole area of the Yangtze River basin. Rain water absorbed by forests and vegetation flows more slowly to rivers and streams, preventing flooding. Among the most recent major flood events are those of 1870, 1931, 1954, 1998, and 2010. The floods were primarily caused by poor management of the rivers, which were overwhelmed by extreme weather in 1931. Humanactivities have greatly increased the risk of theflood hazard. https://earth.esa.int/.../zaoP2lUloYKv/content/flood-yangtze-china-july-1998 Part of Springer Nature. In 1998, catastrophic floods occurred in the whole area of the Yangtze River basin. 2007). 22(5), 697–709. The image is superimposed and uses a semi-transparent layer which highlights the river in light blue. It is characterized high water level, large flood volume and long lasting. ): 1995, Regionalization of Hazards in China, China Science & Technology Press, Beijing (in Chinese). The 1998 China floods (1998年中国洪水) lasted from middle of June to the beginning of September 1998 in China at the Yangtze River[1] as well as the Nen River, Songhua River[2] and the Pearl River. The State Statistical Bureau of China: 1992, China Population Statistics Yearbook, China Statistics Press. 62,500,000 acres were flooded between the beginning of June - September (about 3 months) Area flooded vs. Frequent flooding has claimed more than one million lives in the past 100 years. In the summer of 1998, China experienced severe flooding of the Yangtze River, the Nen River, the Songhua River and the Pearl River after torrential rains took place. Therefore, stopping floods may be changed as flood Perry, C. A.: 1994 Effects of Reservoirs on Flood Discharges in the Kansas and Missouri River Basins 1993, Circular 120-E, US Geological Survey, Denver. The peak of flood, volume of flow, and duration were all record-breaking. Causes of Yangtze Floods in 1998 1998 flood survivors Severe rainfall was the main cause of the floods but man-induced factors included deforestation of erosion-subverting forests in the Yangtze river basin and other areas also contributed to the disaster. 2007). Thus, this archetypal pattern tended to lead a flood event over the Yangtze River Basin which may cause very large economic losses and human causalities (e.g., the flood event in 1998 [5, 6]). Floods annually, 1998 was the worst. The 1998 flood disaster in China 1. 1998 Yangtze River Floods in China Floods in China cause 40% of the total economic loss from natural calamities and are one of the most important and serious natural disasters in China. Multiple studies also suggest that global warming is likely increasing the intensity of the monsoon in Asia. [6][7] Combined with above average rainfall since the previous winter, this pushed water levels to above cautionary levels. Zhou, Z.: 1991, Synoptic characteristics of atmospheric circulation during abnormal Plum Rain period in 1991, J. Nanjing University, Special Issue on the Causes and Countermeasure of Natural Disaster, pp. [4] The floods resulted in 3,704 dead, 15 million homeless and $24 billion in economic loss. Further Reading The Changjiang Water Resources Commission reported the water level had reached 146.97 metres with peak inflows of 53,000 cubic metres per second, the same rate as the 1998 floods. Afterwards, the government wasn’t able to organize enough relief efforts. Third, the construction of levees has caused flood levels to rise due to restricted flood discharge capacity. [7], "The 1998 Yangtze Floods: The Use of Short-Term Forecasts In The Context of Seasonal to Interannual Water Resource Management", "Forest and Flood: Aftermath of the 1998 Yangtze River Flood", "The 1998 Yangtze Floods: The Use of Short-Term Forecasts in the Context of Seasonal to Interannual Water Resource Management", China: Yangtze River Flood (July-August 1998), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1998_China_floods&oldid=974055239, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 20 August 2020, at 20:48. It is characterized high water level, large flood volume and long lasting. Zhang, Z.: 1991, Present situation of Dongting Lake and new consideration about its control, J. 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