The world's maximum observed floods

Knowledge of large floods is essential in addressing problems in civil engineering works especially those concerning water resources management and the susceptibility of flooding of structures in or in the vicinity of rivers. The design of flood protection works rely on the extent of these extreme events. Recent world flood discharges collected for the revised International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS) world Catalogue of maximum floods are plotted against drainage area to produce a world envelope curve. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.