Cumbria Flood Risk Management: Postgraduate Practice Exam
A 20-question postgraduate exam on the 2005 and 2015 Cumbria floods, non-stationary flood frequency analysis, CityCAT modelling and the Kendal FRM scheme, drawn from the pack's five study sources.
20 questions · pass mark 70% · try 5 free
1 According to the 2006 technical report, what primarily made the January 2005 Cumbria storm rare?
- Its exceptionally high peak hourly intensity
- Its long duration rather than its intensity
- A tidal surge in the Solway Firth
- Snowmelt from the Pennines
The report concludes that the storm's rarity was associated with its length rather than rainfall intensity, with an overall return period of about 100 years (1%).
2 What was the estimated peak flow of the River Eden at Sheepmount, Carlisle, in January 2005?
- 950 m³/s
- 1020 m³/s
- 1680 m³/s
- 1520 m³/s
The Eden peaked at an estimated 1520 m³/s at Sheepmount at 14:30 on 8 January 2005, a return period of about 175–200 years. 1680 m³/s was the Desmond peak in 2015.
3 Roughly what proportion of the more than 2,500 properties flooded in Cumbria in January 2005 were in Carlisle?
- About 75%
- About 25%
- About 50%
- About 90%
More than 2,500 properties flooded, some 75% of them in Carlisle (1,865 of the 2,544 in the county table).
4 What effect did the high tide in the Solway Firth have on peak river levels through Carlisle in January 2005?
- It raised peak levels by about 1 m
- It delayed the peak by about 6 hours
- It had no effect
- It caused the Caldew defences to fail
Studies showed that the high tide had no effect on peak river levels through Carlisle.
5 Which type of Environment Agency forecasting model performed well during the 2005 event but cannot give long lead times or predict flood peaks?
- Correlation models
- Transfer function models
- Simple trigger models
- The ISIS real-time hydraulic model
Simple trigger models performed well but cannot provide long lead times or predict peaks. Correlation models under-predicted on the Eden and at Keswick, and ISIS under-predicted the Carlisle peak.
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