Surfing the Chaos: The 100-Year Flood Myth

During 2015 and 2016, record flooding plagued the State of Texas. Long duration meteorological events and numerous extreme storm events occurred across Texas. There was over $850 million in damages during 2015, with 48 deaths. There were 29 deaths in second quarter of 2016 with significant additional damages. During this 2 year period, there were many storms that exceeded infrastructure design standards. Are the current infrastructure design standards adequate? What research is currently underway to decrease uncertainty and improve estimates of flood potential? Is it time to shift from a deterministic approach to a risk based approach in order to decrease consequences? What research is still needed to reduce uncertainty and allow infrastructure design professionals to better manage flood risk? What can cities and infrastructure groups do immediately to decrease flood impacts?