Craig Allan on flood risk in Charlotte
Craig Allan, professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Geographical Sciences, was quoted in The Charlotte Observer’s article, “Why this Charlotte-area community flooded during Helene — and could be submerged again.”
In September 2024, Hurricane Helene caused devastating flooding in the Charlotte communities below Mountain Island Lake. Residents are still struggling to rebuild and considering whether to relocate.
As climate change progresses and development along the Catawba River continues to increase, flooding will only get worse, and most reservoirs and impoundments along the river have little storage capacity to mitigate the risk.
“It’s kind of a juggling act, balancing as you draw down one, and you don’t want to flood the downstream reservoir, so you are spilling water from that one to the next one and so on,” said Allan. “If we keep having these extreme rainfall events, and we see this in urban areas, in Charlotte, areas that are repeatedly flooded, homeowners either have to raise their homes or relocate.”