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June Flooding Slams Iowa
Get Flood Updates on the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS)
Rock Valley previously experienced flooding as recently as 2014.
Flooding slammed Iowa again this week, in what has become an all-too-familiar situation. Heavy rainfall in Northwest Iowa has forced evacuation of homes and businesses in Rock Valley and raised stream levels throughout the region. Significant rain fell over the Iowa Great Lakes region on Sunday, raising stream levels on the Des Moines River to moderate flood stage near Estherville on Monday.
Central Iowa, too, is experiencing flooding. According to The Des Moines Register, the Saylorville Lake beach and other recreation areas will likely be closed over the upcoming July 4 holiday because of rising water levels. Officials expect the Saylorville Reservoir to approach its limit next week.
Rain continues in Central Iowa. Some areas of Polk County received up to five inches of rain Monday and early Tuesday.
The Iowa Flood Center at the University of Iowa provides 24/7, up-to-the-minute information on current flood conditions on the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS), which is available to the public online. IFIS provides current stream levels, flood alerts and forecasts, inundation maps for many river communities, and more.
Engineers Map Rivers to Prepare, Inform Iowans of Flooding
Iowa Flood Information System offers Real-time Flood Information—Perfect for a Rainy June!
During this wet and rainy June, we invite you to check out the latest conditions in your part of the state by visiting the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS). Individuals can access IFIS by visiting http://ifis.iowafloodcenter.org.
(IFIS) is an online tool developed by the Iowa Flood Center (IFC) at the University of Iowa. IFIS provides a user-friendly, interactive web application that allows all Iowans access to community-based flood information, including current stream and river level data from more than 200 IFC stream-stage sensors across the state.
IFIS provides more than 1,000 communities with information regarding flood conditions, forecasts, warnings, visualizations, and other flood-related data. The application is based on an easy-to-use Google Maps interface that displays up-to-the-minute community specific information on rainfall, stream levels, and more, including:
- Flooding scenarios with contributions from multiple rivers;
- Real-time and historical data on water levels, gauge heights, and rainfall conditions;
- 2D and 3D interactive visualizations; and;
- Flood inundation maps for Mason City, Spencer, Humboldt, Charles City, Waverly, Elkader, Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Independence, Ames, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Hills, Columbus Junction, Maquoketa and Ottumwa.
(IFIS) helps Iowans make better-informed decisions on flood planning and mitigation efforts and alerts communities in advance to help them prepare for and minimize potential flood damage. Watershed management groups across the state can also use IFIS to assist with conservation planning to improve soil and water quality and protect people and infrastructure.
The IFC is part of IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering, a leading research institute based at the University of Iowa’s College of Engineering. The IFC was established in the spring of 2009 following the 2008 flooding disaster. Iowa legislators recognized the need to establish a center for flood research and education to help Iowans better understand their flood risks. It is the nation’s first academic center devoted solely to the study of floods.
Media Contact
Breanna Zimmerman, Iowa Flood Center Outreach Coordinator, 319-384-1729, Breanna-zimmerman@uiowa.edu.
Flood Inundation Maps for Independence
By Shianne Gruss, IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering
Citizens of Independence can now access online maps that show how flooding events are likely to affect their community, homes, and businesses. Independence is one of 14 Iowa cities to be part of the Iowa Flood Center’s (IFC) community-based flood inundation mapping project.
“We’ve been moving through and trying to [map] most of the major communities located on rivers in Iowa,” says Dan Gilles, IFC water resources engineer. He says the team surveys a few cities each year.
The project, which is in its sixth year, provides select Iowa communities with online access to real-time flood information. The maps live on the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS), an interactive Google-maps based tool. Sliders allow users to view the extent of flooding at various river flood stages.
The inundation maps for Independence can be viewed by the public on on the Iowa Flood Information System.
A major reason Independence was selected, says Gilles, was because of its recent flooding history. In 2013, the Wapsipinicon River was expected to crest at an all-time high after six inches of rain fell in the area overnight, but it surprisingly crested just two feet above flood stage.
Dan Gilles, Water Resources Engineer
“When a situation like that happens, community members are always wondering how high the water is going to get and whether they need to evacuate,” says Gilles. While the maps do not improve the forecast, they do improve the ability of the IFC to communicate what will happen during a flood event.
Situated along the fifth largest river in Iowa (excluding the Missouri and Mississippi) and near a dam, Independence is prone to flooding. “Usually communities are a lot more willing to go through this process of creating maps if they’ve found a need for them,” says Gilles.
Local emergency management personnel definitely see the need and have supported the project from the beginning. Rick Wulfekuhle, Buchanan County emergency management coordinator, says the maps could help different emergency services respond appropriately to a flood event with their distinct resources.
The IFC will present the project at the Independence City Council meeting on Monday, April 13.
The Iowa Flood Center is part of IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering, a unit of the UI College of Engineering. The IFC was created in 2009 in the aftermath of the historic 2008 Iowa floods and is supported by state appropriations to improve flood monitoring and prevention in Iowa.
The maps for Independence and other communities can be viewed online at: ifis.iowafloodcenter.org.
Current Flood Conditions
If you have questions related to current flood conditions, please contact the Iowa Flood Center at 319-384-1729.
The Iowa Flood Center (IFC) at the University of Iowa has an online tool, the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS), allowing all Iowans to access the latest community-based flood conditions, including current stream and river levels at nearly 300 US Geological Survey and IFC gauges across the state.
To access IFIS, go to http://ifis.iowafloodcenter.org. From this page, users can launch IFIS.
IFIS, developed by the Iowa Flood Center, is a user-friendly online application based on a Google Maps-interface. IFIS displays up-to-the-minute community-specific information on rainfall, stream levels, and more, including:
- Real-time stream levels at nearly 300 locations in Iowa;
- Current flood warnings and stream forecasts;
- Real-time rainfall maps displaying current conditions and past rainfall accumulation; and
- Flood inundation maps for select communities, including Ames, Cedar Rapids, Charles City, Des Moines, Iowa City, Mason City, Ottumwa, Spencer, and Waterloo/Cedar Falls.
One tool in IFIS allows users to view possible inundation in some communities.
Another tool allows users to view daily rainfall alongside current river conditions.
The Iowa Flood Center is part of IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering, a research institute based at the University of Iowa’s College of Engineering. The IFC was established in 2009 to provide accurate, state-of-the-science-based information to help Iowans better understand their flood risks. It is the nation’s first academic center devoted solely to the study of floods.
CONTACT:
Sara Steussy, Iowa Flood Center, 319-384-1729, sara-steussy@uiowa.edu
Community-based Inundation Maps Available on IFIS
As floodwaters rise, our anxiety levels often do too. But this time around, Iowans have new sources of reliable information to turn to, thanks to the Iowa Flood Center (IFC) at the University of Iowa.
The IFC offers Iowans a set of readily accessible online tools through the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS). IFIS provides maps and up-to-date information about community-specific flood conditions across the state.
Flood inundation maps of 10 Iowa communities are particularly useful during flood events to help people visualize the potential extent of flooding at a range of river levels. This information can help individuals and communities plan and make sound mitigation decisions, and allows homeowners, business owners, and others see how predicted flood levels might affect their property.
IFIS includes a full set of flood inundation maps for the following communities (click a community to view the map):
- Des Moines
- Ames
- Spencer
- Mason City
- Charles City
- Waterloo/Cedar Falls
- Cedar Rapids
- Iowa City
- Hills
- Elkader
Nathan Young, associate director of the Iowa Flood Center, says the IFC has been developing flood inundation maps since the center was launched four years ago. “This is an opportunity for us to apply research that is useful and meaningful for Iowans,” he says. “Our maps demonstrate not just a 100-year flood or a 500-year flood, but also the extent of the flooded landscape with every six-inch rise in the projected flood level. We believe this extra measure of preparedness can save property, resources, and lives.”
To access IFIS, visit ifis.iowafloodcenter.org. From this page, you can launch IFIS or view a brief tutorial on how to use the system. To view flood inundation maps for one of the communities listed above, users should select “Flood Map Libraries” from the Flood Maps menu option on the IFIS dashboard and select the appropriate community. The flood map controller slide bar on the right allows users to see the potential extent of flooding at any selected stage or discharge.
IFIS uses a Google maps interface, so users can zoom in and out, switch to different views (satellite and street view), and navigate around the map.
Maps for additional communities are added to IFIS each year. For additional information on the development of the community-based flood inundation maps, visit: http://iowafloodcenter.org/projects/flood-inundation-maps/.
Iowa Flood Center Deploys Rain Gauges
Jim Niemeier installs an Iowa Flood Center rain gauge and soil moisture platform in NE Iowa.
This time of year, nothing interests farmers — and most other Iowans as well — more than rainfall. Nearly every conversation you hear includes some version of “Is it going to rain today?” Or if it has rained recently, you’ll hear “How much did we get?”
The Iowa Flood Center (IFC) is helping answer the second question with a high level of accuracy, thanks to new state-of-the-art technology. IFC researchers have designed and installed 20 state-of-the-art rain gauges with soil moisture probes in the Turkey River watershed in northeast Iowa, with a few more gauges in the South Fork of the Iowa River watershed (Franklin, Hamilton, and Hardin counties) and the Walnut Creek watershed (Jasper County).
“Rain is critical to so many human activities,” says Witold Krajewski, director of the Iowa Flood Center. “These instruments offer access to real-time information that people need.”
A total of twenty-eight Iowa Flood Center rain gauge and soil moisture platforms were deployed across three Iowa watersheds in April 2013.
In addition to measuring precipitation totals, the new gauges also measure moisture and temperature of the soil. The units are solar powered and transmit data via a built-in cell modem. The information is displayed on IFIS with a user-friendly graphic interface.
To view real-time precipitation, soil temperature, and soil moisture data from the instruments, visit IFIS:
- Click ‘Launch’.
- Choose the State Overview option on the dashboard and click ‘Launch’.
- In the upper right corner of the screen, hover your mouse over the DATA RESOURCES tab and click the box next to Rain/Soil Moisture Gauges.
- Click on a gauge icon to get more details from that location.
- From here, you can click to view additional rain gauge or soil moisture info for the site.
In IFIS, users can view real-time data from the gauges including soil moisture and soil temperature at depths of 2″, 4″ 8″ and 20″ near the gauge.
The new deployment of rain gauges is part of the Iowa Flood Studies project, also known as IFloodS, undertaken this spring in partnership with NASA. IFloodS researchers are collecting ground data across Eastern Iowa as part of NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement Mission, an international satellite mission that will set a new standard for global precipitation measurements from space.
Based at IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering at the University of Iowa, the Iowa Flood Center provides accurate, state-of-the-science-based information to help decision-makers, individuals, and communities better understand their flood risks.
Flood Levels Across Iowa
Flood Inundation Map: Mason City
Center Develops Web-Based Flood Map for Mason City
A new web-based flood preparedness tool developed at the Iowa Flood Center (IFC) can help Mason City residents know what to expect from the Winnebago River at times of high flows.
The new Mason City flood inundation maps are available to the public on the Internet through the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS), an interactive Google Maps-based online application. Homeowners and business owners will now be able to see how predicted flood levels might affect their individual properties.
Nathan Young, IFC associate director, says improving flood preparedness is one of the IFC’s key goals. “This is an opportunity for us to produce research that is useful and meaningful for Iowans. Our high-resolution web-based flood inundation maps illustrate where floodwaters will go under different conditions.
He adds, “We believe this extra measure of preparedness can save property, resources, and lives.”
With these maps, Iowa Flood Center researchers are taking the guesswork out of future flood scenarios for Mason City and several other Iowa communities. When floods struck Iowa in the past, uncertainty was part of the problem. Property owners were unsure if projected floodwaters would reach them, and how they ought to prepare.
“The models and information provided by the Iowa Flood Center are another set of tools for our city to use in planning for a flooding event,” says Mason City City Administrator Brent Trout. “We need information like this to better understand and predict where flooding will occur first, so we can put our resources at the correct location.”
Trout adds, “We appreciate IFC completing this for our community.”
IFC engineers use bathymetric surveys of the riverbed to determine the shape of the channel and aerial LiDAR (laser radar) data. With this information, researchers can create very detailed maps of the streambed and floodplain to illustrate where floodwaters will go under different conditions.
The detailed flood inundation maps are available online for a number of Iowa communities including Cedar Rapids, Charles City, Des Moines, Elkader, Hills, Iowa City, and Waterloo/Cedar Falls. Additional communities will be mapped in the future.
To use the interactive online maps, visit the Iowa Flood Information System (IFIS). Launch IFIS, and click “Flood Maps” to view the inundation maps.
The Iowa Flood Center is part of IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering, a unit of the UI College of Engineering. The IFC was created in 2009 in the aftermath of the historic 2008 Iowa floods and is supported by state appropriations to improve flood monitoring and prevention in Iowa.
MEDIA CONTACT: Sara Steussy, Iowa Flood Center, 319-384-1729, sara-steussy@uiowa.edu
