The DANA storm - a Spanish acronym for high-altitude isolated depression -that destroyed areas of the Valencian Community, Murcia, Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia on 29 October had devastating consequences: 223 fatalities and catastrophic effects in 75 municipalities. Despite the meteorological warnings and hydrological alerts from the headwaters of the affected basins, the information did not reach the population as a whole effectively or with enough time. This extreme episode, which broke all-time rainfall records, hit densely populated and highly occupied flood zones, causing extremely serious flooding in the basins of the Poyo ravine and the river Magro.
Why did such extraordinary rainfall occur and can it be attributed to climate change? Why was the flooding so disproportionate and caused such catastrophic damage? What mistakes were made in the management of the emergency? What lessons can we draw from what happened in the Valencian Community during the DANA storm? What are the challenges in Catalonia and what can be the role of geological professionals in flood risk management?
These are some of the questions of the fifth edition of GeoDebats, which will take place next Wednesday, 18 December, at 5.00 p.m., in the Aula Magna Carmina Virgili of the UB's Faculty of Earth Sciences. The session can be followed live . UB's GeoDebats are an initiative promoted by the Faculty of Earth Sciences with the aim of highlighting the diversity and relevance of geological knowledge to address the multiple social, environmental and economic challenges of the 21st century.
To reflect on the causes of the serious effects of the last DANA and address the current challenges in the Catalan territory in flood risk management, experts Montse Font, head of the Operations Coordination Center (CECAT) of civil protection of Catalonia; Glòria Furdada, geologist, specialist in flood risk and member of UB's RISKNAT research group will participate in this new edition of the GeoDebats. The session will also include the participation of Francesc Mauri, geographer, radio and television presenter and meteorologist at TV3; Vicente Medina, professor at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and expert in hydraulic engineering and fluid mechanics; and Jorge Olcina, geographer, professor and principal researcher of the research group on Climate and Land Management at the University of Alicante.
