FLOOD DAMAGES
There are two types of flood damages :
1) Direct damage
2) Indirect damage
1) Direct damage :
Direct damage results due to physical contact of floodwater.
For example :
- Damage to crops
- Damage to houses
- Damage to human lives and live-stock
- Damage to public utilities, roadways, rail road, etc.
2) Indirect damage :
Indirect damage result to property or services which are not touched by flood water, but it is a loss of damage as a result of interrupted trade or division of rail or roadway traffic or other effect.
For example :
Factories, shops and business centre in flood affected areas may be closed, resulting in the loss of their owners, stoppage of industrial production and temporary unemployment of workers.
There are two types of losses due to flood disaster :
(i) Tangible losses
(b) Intangible losses
(i) Tangible Losses :
The tangible losses are those which can be estimated in terms of some money value. The tangible losses :
- Damage of personal properties like buildings. furniture, electronic goods etc.
- Loss of crops
- Loss due to disruption of trade, business etc.
- Loss due to disruption of road and railway communications
- Cost of relief measures
Damages to properties such as building, public utilities, rodways bridges, canals, embankments and telephone and electric lines bear a significant part of flood damages.
These damages are assessed on the basis of estimated cost of repairs.
Damage to crops constitutes more than 60% of the total damages in India and hence greater care is needed for its assessment.
Direct assessment of crop damage just after the flood becomes overestimated if replanting and resowing another crop after the flood is adopted.
Thus, the correct estimate of flood damage of crops is the preliminary estimate prepared just after the flood less the return obtain from replanting after the flood.
Rail and road communication in affected areas may be interrupted resulting in reduced earning of railways and transport operations.
Daily wage earners and small peddler working in the affected areas may suffer loss in their daily wages or earnings.
Cost of relief measures should be estimated.
(ii) Intangible losses :
The intangible losses are those which cannot be estimated in money values.
The following are the intangible losses :
- Loss of human life and cattle
- Loss of health due to diseases caused by flood
- Loss caused by social distress
- Loss due to hindrance in development works of towns or cities.
- Snake bites and other physical ailments and hardships
Loss of human lives in flood may be due to capsizing boats, house collapse, etc.
Loss of human lives is assessed only in number not in monetary values.
But in case of loss of cattle, monetary value of such losses should be estimated.
But in case of loss of cattle, monetary value of such losses should be estimated.