The True Cost of Flooding

In 2016, worldwide, there were 342 reported natural disasters 
The total number of Hydrological disasters in 2016 was 177 (164 floods and 13 landslides)
The total number of peopled affected by Hydrological disasters in 2016 was 78.1 million
The total number of deaths from Hydrological disasters in 2016 was 5,092*

On 4th January 2018, Insurance company Munich Re, released their Natural Catastrophe Review which shows that 2017 had the highest insured losses, ever, at 330 billion USD, (the second highest figure ever recorded for natural disasters.)

In 2017, worldwide, there were 710 reported natural disasters.

The figures of people affected, and the number of deaths has not yet been reported, but it is estimated to be substantially higher than 2016

Each year scientists gather information to predict global weather forecast. They study historical weather patterns, the behavior of the atmosphere, effects of climate change, the oceans movement, watching radars, and satellites all to forecast when and where natural disasters may occur. And yet each year, more and more people are being affected by flooding in some way, be that the loss of livelihoods, homes or indeed lives.

Torsten Jeworrek of Munich Re said, “For me, a key point is that some of the catastrophic events, such as the series of three extremely damaging hurricanes, or the very severe flooding in South Asia after extraordinarily heavy monsoon rains, are giving us a foretaste of what is to come. Because even though individual events cannot be directly traced to climate change, our experts expect such extreme weather to occur more often in future.”

If the extreme weather that we are witnessing is to continue to occur more often, then solutions need to be found to minimize the effect of flooding on communities.

One such solution currently operational, with notable success is DefenCell, an effective and easily installed Flood Protection Barrier. DefenCell Barriers are a cellular textile containment system that can be filled with various materials; soil, sand, gravel or small rocks whilst the heavy-duty geotextile fabric construction adapts to the terrain, offering excellent structural strength and durability. The easy-to-deploy cellular confinement system is well suited for irregular terrain and the addition of an integral or external impervious layer makes an effective flood barrier for temporary or permanent installation.

DefenCell has been proven in action and undergone thorough testing.  DefenCell can be used to build new defences, enhance existing protection measures or reinforce weakened levees ensuring that communities, towns and farms are protected.

A simple one metre high (or just 0.50m) wall will be sufficient to stop all but the most extreme flooding. Adding this to an existing levee or embankment is a quick and easy solution and many times faster than installing the equivalent barrier using sandbags and much faster and easier to remove when the threat has passed. DefenCell proved its operational capabilities on two flood prevention deployments on the Ohio River in the US and in Ontario, Canada.

In 2017, J&S Franklins DefenCell products were installed in two separate areas in South Australia for environmental applications including Ground Stabilisation, Flood Protection and Erosion Control with great success.

Andrew Cole, Chief Executive Officer, ‎District Council of Barunga West, South Australia, said, “Whilst its normal use is military protection, security and flood/erosion barriers, we saw DefenCell as a flexible, cost-effective solution in front of the caravan park.  We ran a coastal trial and monitored DefenCell’s performance in tidal sea movement including high tides.”

“DefenCell maintained its integrity and we are very confident moving to a full deployment of DefenCell along the caravan park foreshore.  It is an easy product to use and there is potential for us to use it elsewhere on Council tasks.”