flash flooding
Rapid water surge
Flash flooding is a rapid rise of water in low-lying areas, typically within minutes or hours of heavy rainfall, dam failure, or sudden snowmelt.
Unlike gradual flooding, flash floods strike with little warning and can turn dry creek beds into torrents: Flash flooding closed several roads in the canyon.
The term appears frequently in weather alerts.
- inundationOverwhelming surge of water
- wall of waterVertical advancing flood
- cloudburstSudden heavy localized rainfall
- rainfallWater falling from clouds
- delugeSevere overflow of water
rising waters · flood damage · slot canyon · creek bed · drowning · swept · flood · hailstorm · stranded · arroyos · precipitation · supercell · monsoon · storm surge · landslides · drainage systems · displacement · submerged
- floodsflood damage, flood warning, deluge, flood warnings, flood stage
flash floodingseasonal flooding
Regular overflow tied to weather cycles
tidal flooding · river flooding · coastal flooding · monsoon flooding
flash floodingdrought
Prolonged water scarcity
desiccation · aridity · water scarcity · dry spell · dehydration
flash floodingreceding waters
Flow moving away
drainage · flash drought · drawdown · ebb tide · ebb
flash, flashy, flashing, flashed, flooding, flashes, flashiness, flasher, flashers