fluten

Fluten is the German plural form of Flut, meaning floods or floodwaters. In German-language weather, hydrology, and disaster reporting, Fluten denotes the inundation of land by water from rivers, lakes, or the sea, typically resulting from heavy rainfall, rapid snowmelt, storm surges, or the breaching of water barriers. The term is used in official forecasts and historical records to describe flood events and their extent.

Causes and types: Fluten can be riverine, coastal, urban (pluvial), or compound. They are forecast and monitored by national meteorological services and hydrological agencies, using river gauging, rainfall data, and forecasting models. Flood events are characterized by peak discharge, extent of inundation, and duration.

Impacts and management: Floods cause casualties, displacement, infrastructure damage, and agricultural losses. Risk reduction combines land-use planning, flood defenses such as levees and dams, retention basins, improved drainage, and early warning systems. Climate change is expected to alter the severity and frequency of Fluten in many regions, with regional variations.

See also: Flood, Floodplain, Hydrology, Disaster risk reduction.