Flood Early Warning System - City of Raleigh, North Carolina

The City of Raleigh, North Carolina, is currently developing its own Flood Early Warning System (FEWS), where capabilities include advanced prediction of potential stream flooding and at localized hotspots, with an increased lead time for road closures, evacuation, and emergency response. Operational flood modeling coupled with current precipitation estimates from gauge adjusted radar rainfall (GARR) forms the basis for predictive flood modeling in near-real-time (NRT). In the first two phases, the FEWS system was set up along Crabtree Creek, with model calibration and inundation mapping, followed by expansion to Walnut Creek to the Neuse River. Model output is configured to produce predictive inundation maps, stream stage and discharge, and notifications when critical thresholds are reached. Results from this program offer increased lead time to notify first responders and to help manage flood emergencies within the City before, during, and after the event.