By Lawson Murphy
Studies have shown that about every 100 to 200 years a megaflood occurs in California mostly caused by just rainfall. This flood could strike California sometime in the next few years and devastate our economy. In upcoming years, the risk for a megaflood in California has increased because of climate change. There’s more moisture in the atmosphere which leads to much more precipitation which increases the chance for a flood.
In fact there was a megaflood in California back in 1862, around the Sacramento area which was very deadly and destructive. Many deaths occured from the waters as well as a ton of property damage.
Not just the Sacramento area was affected. All across California there were areas that were affected but the Sacramento area was one of the most affected. Nowadays we won’t be as greatly affected by it. However, it is still a danger to human lives and the economy for all the damage we could face from it.
The danger is not immediate, it is predicted to arrive in the next few decades. There’s still time to prepare against it so it won’t affect us as much as it did in the past. We could of course try to assist in helping climate change by creating buildings or reinforcing already built ones with protection from floods. We could also try to prevent it by reworking or adding new flood systems that filter out water more easily.
If a megaflood hit us right now, we would suffer immensely because we’re unprepared for one. It’s not avoidable but the damages could be reduced to be far less destructive. The previous one came after a month of heavy rain, so if that happens again which is rare for California, it could be an indicator of a megaflood.
There was a study by Advanced Science where it showed that the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys could turn into a temporary valley following the flood because of the forming of the land and how much water there would be. This could however be prevented like the other items I’ve discussed; it is not set in stone.
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