Calculation of Critical Rainfall for Small-Watershed Flash Floods Based on the HEC-HMS Hydrological Model

Wenlin Yuan, Meiqi Liu () and Fang Wan ()
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Wenlin Yuan: Zhengzhou University
Meiqi Liu: Zhengzhou University
Fang Wan: North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power

Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), 2019, vol. 33, issue 7, No 19, 2555-2575

Abstract: Abstract The sudden occurrence and randomness of heavy rainstorms in hilly areas pose challenges to the identification of early warning indicators for mountain flash flood. This study explores the variation of critical rainfall under different rainfall patterns, mainly considering the effect of differences in the timing of peak rainfall (i.e., early, late or in the middle of the rainfall process). The HEC-HMS model was used to simulate the rainfall-runoff process and determine the early warning indicators under different rainfall patterns through repeated trial calculation. The time-interval characteristic rainfall assessment method was then used to verify the theoretical value of critical rainfall against information from actual flood disasters. The results show that: (1) The timing of peak rainfall within the rainfall event is negatively correlated with the magnitude of the critical rainfall. (2) Critical rainfall is more sensitive to rainfall pattern than to soil moisture content. (3) For the three early warning periods considered, the critical rainfall with the BEF rainfall pattern is about 1.20–1.22 times that with pattern MID, while the critical rainfall with the MID rainfall pattern is about 1.24 times that with BEH. Thus, this paper elucidates the impact of the randomness of rainfall patterns on critical rainfall and provides a valuable reference for the analysis and calculation of early warning indicators of mountain flash flood.

Keywords: Mountain flash flood; HEC-HMS model; Rainfall pattern; Rainfall early-warning indicators; Comprehensive rationality assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11269-019-02257-0

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