Floods are the most widespread climate-related hazards in the world, and they impact more people globally than any other type of natural disasters. It causes over one third of the total economic loss from natural catastrophes and is responsible for two thirds of people affected by natural disasters. On the other hand, studies and analysis have shown that damage reductions due to forecasts improvements can range from a few percentage points to as much as 35% of annual flood damages. About 300 people lose their lives each year due to floods and landslides in Nepal with property damage exceeding 626 million NPR on average. The West Rapti River basin is one of the most flood prone river basins in Nepal. The real-time flood early warning system together with the development of water management and flood protection schemes plays a crucial role in reducing the loss of lives and properties and in overall development of the basin. The non-structural mitigating measure places people away from flood. This method is designed to reduce the impact of flooding to society and economy. This paper presents an overview of flood problems in the West Rapti River basin, causes and consequences of recent floods and the applicability and effectiveness of the real time data to flood early warning in Nepal.
Talchabhadel, R. and Sharma, R. (2014) Real Time Data Analysis of West Rapti River Basin of Nepal. Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 2, 1-7. doi: 10.4236/gep.2014.25001.
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