DINAGUA PARTICIPATES IN THE FORMATION OF A SITUATION ROOM FOR HYDROLOGICAL ALERT
June 25, 2019
The National Water Directorate (Dinagua), along with other agencies, is preparing a situation room for hydrological alerts that will improve flood prevention, according to the head of the agency, Daniel Greif. Telemetry stations will be installed in Treinta y Tres and Río Branco; and cities located along the Santa Lucía River basin will also have early warning systems.
To anticipate flooding and minimize damage in areas built without preventative measures, early flood warning systems were developed in the most vulnerable cities. «The goal is for the National Emergency System to be able to ensure an orderly and dry evacuation response,» Greif explained to the Secretariat of Institutional Communication.
Through an agreement with the National Agency for Research and Innovation (ANII), the Faculty of Engineering and the National Emergency System (Sinae), Dinagua operates the early warning system in Durazno and, soon, other systems will be operational in Artigas and Quaraí.
Currently, work is underway to install a situation room for hydrological alerts, with support from the Brazilian National Water Agency, in coordination with the National Institute of Meteorology and the National Emergency System (SINAE). This room will systematize and unify the various alert systems, allowing for a comprehensive and proactive view with continuous centralized attention and coordinated action with all departmental agencies within the system.
During 2017, the development of new early warning systems is planned for cities near the Santa Lucía River basin, utilizing existing telemetry stations and studies. Additional cities will be added based on their vulnerability and capacity to respond. This initiative is in addition to the installation of telemetry stations in Treinta y Tres and Rio Branco, which has already begun.
The incorporation of new technologies, such as weather radars and satellite and hydrological information, is carried out jointly with all the institutions involved through a project supported by the World Bank.
Furthermore, Greif highlighted the incorporation of «risk maps» into land-use plans. These maps include data on flood curves, regulations, and actions for each area. To create these maps, topographic surveys are conducted, water flow patterns and other issues are identified in collaboration with local stakeholders, and historical statistics and hydrological models of waterways are used to perform simulations.
Risk maps have now been incorporated into the plans for the most vulnerable cities: Artigas, Bella Unión, Durazno, Treinta y Tres, San José, Ciudad del Plata, and Paysandú, and are being developed for Salto, Rivera, and Juan Lacaze, among other cities. This data is relevant for the location of the public housing system.
«With the risk systems and maps, the departmental Emergency Coordination Centers have an informative record about the population for each alert level,» Greif stated.
Large dams, such as those at Salto Paysandú, Paso de los Toros, and Mercedes, have water regulators. These infrastructures can provide information for coordinating evacuations, an operation carried out through emergency action plans that include the early evacuation of the population.
Early warning systems have been in use since 2002. These tools initially operated using rainfall records, but now utilize more sophisticated runoff models that incorporate real-time water level readings from telemetry stations and precipitation forecasts. This allows for a more accurate assessment and faster response times.
According to Director Greif, gathering information is crucial when extreme events occur, both to assess and compare expected water levels based on simulations, and to identify the affected population, as well as to correct and calibrate the mathematical models used.
In an emergency, each organization fulfills different roles. Some are on the front lines providing direct support to flood victims, while others are responsible for collecting data and evaluating situations so that the experience of the event can be used as a tool for continuous improvement.