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~.'. j ;+ I A PLANNING AND OPERATIONS GUIDE CONNllCTICUT' S FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM Alphonse J. Letendre Douglas Glowacki Abstract f Shortly after the devastating 1982 floods, Connecticut decided to establish a flood warning system to help mitigate damage and reduce the potential of loss of life. By 1993, a statewide system (ASERT) which includes 14 precipitation gauges, 6 automated weather stations, four local warning systems (ALERT) and the gauge information from a private cooperator has been installed. < . Communities that suffer from repeated flood damage can benefit from the installation of a flood warning system. Systems are now available at a reas.::mable cost. If planners follow the design steps and procedures that are listed below, they will develop the tools needed to decide if a flood warning system is useful for their community. ; t' The Flood Audit program that was developed in Connecticut in cooperation with thE~ Soil Conversation Service is also a major point of emphasis. Each homeowner or business operator can use information develope:d specifically for their property to reduce damage to their contents and structures. r 1 r. ~_.' , ~,- FLOOD WARNING SYSTEMS: DO I NEED ONE! WILL IT WORK! The components of the decision making process that will help evaluate the need and the cost effectiveness of a flood warning system include: ~ , !,~ ~: f 1. History of Flooding - How to determine the flood potential of your community and the level of damages that can be expected. ~, l ~ . 1-' ~ . 2. Designing a Tabll~ Top Model - The methods used to plan a flood warning system in the office include the layout of the river basin, locating gauges and 1:he base station, how to do a radio path survey and the methods employed to field check radio paths. The last subject covE!red deals with the methods used in Connecticut to fund the installation of municipal flood warning systems, in particular FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. I