Floods

Floods — page 1 — Water Water Everywhere Most of the time water is a good thing We need water to drink and to grow our food We wash with water and use it to power machines Water can also be fun to play in Many people enjoy swimming fishing and boating in water all over the world People could not survive without water However too much water can be dangerous and devastating 4

Floods — page 2 — A flood occurs when water covers an area of land that is usually dry Floods are one of the most common natural disasters on Earth Most of the world’s population lives near rivers or oceans so flooding is a big problem for people every year all over the world Floods affect more than 500,000,000 people every year and cause billions of dollars in damage 5

Floods — page 3 — condensation precipitation evaporation collection Most floods happen when there is too much rain Usually water falls from the sky to the Earth as rain or snow The water drains into rivers and streams From there the water flows into the ocean Finally some of the water in the ocean evaporates or turns into a gas The gas rises into the clouds and turns into rain or snow This process is called the water cycle 6

Floods — page 4 — Usually the water cycle works just fine However sometimes bad storms develop These storms can produce large amounts of rain When a lot of rain falls the ground cannot absorb all of it and streams and rivers overflow These conditions may create a flood Snow can also cause floods If an area gets a lot of snow in the winter it can produce a heavy runoff or flow of water when the snow melts in the spring The melted snow can make rivers and streams overflow When snow melts after a hard winter so much water rushes into streams and rivers that it can create devastating floods for miles 7

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