Real-time Flood Forecasting for Climate Response

Jacobs partnered with the Environment Agency in England to develop a cloud-based platform that improves forecasting and decision-making during flood events. Read for the full details on this game-changing tool and how data-enabled solutions are shaping climate response.

Flood management is a significant challenge for communities worldwide, particularly as climate change results in more intense, and less predictable, storm events.

Access to high-quality forecast and risk data is essential when responding to flood incidents, although in many cases existing tools cannot provide the required information fast enough – often taking hours or sometimes days to undertake analysis, by which time the flood has already passed.

To help address this challenge in England, the Environment Agency commissioned Jacobs to develop an innovative digital solution that would provide real-time evaluation of flood risk consequences.  

The Environment Agency is responsible for managing flood risk across England, taking the lead role in advising the public about flood risk, maintaining flood management infrastructure, and responding to flood incidents. The Environment Agency was looking for real-time insights into how flood incidents will unfold, allowing for better informed decisions and more effective risk communication with the public.

The data-enabled solution that Jacobs developed for the Environment Agency is the Flood Incident Mapper (FIM) tool, which leverages the technology behind Flood Modeller. FIM is a web-based, on-demand 2D hydraulic modelling platform that allows for instant creation of hydraulic models to forecast flood extents associated with failure or overtopping of flood management assets (walls, pumps, gates) during a storm event. At the click of a button, users can create detailed hydraulic models and simulations in a cloud environment. The results are available in minutes and displayed using a webmap for easy interpretation and rapid sharing with stakeholders and the public.

The system also provides instant statistics on asset data, ground elevation models (LiDAR) and existing flood warning areas, which further supports operational decisions. Automated model setup and a cloud-based platform mean that the solution can easily be used by non-technical teams, which is essential during a flood incident.

“We have enabled our highly accurate and robust 2D numerical engines, which undertake the complex mathematical calculations required for flood forecasting, to deliver the results in minutes instead of hours, or sometimes days, which had previously been the case,” says Jacobs Water & Environment Director Richard Crowder. “This game-changing technology will enable decision makers to take timely actions during life-threatening floods.”