Semi-arid regions are characterized by important infrequent rainfall. They often occur in early autumn and give rise to devastating floods. Flooding problems at Wadi Mekerra, located in the Sidi Bel Abbes town (Northwest Algeria), was traditionally the main concern of researchers and government officials. In this work, the magnitude of raging flood wave in the studied catchment and the principal causes are discussed. After this, we present the main hydromorphometric features and the results of numerical simulations of flood wave. This simulation is done by using finite volume shock capturing schemes. It concerns applying the first order Godunov scheme and the second order Monotonic Central scheme. The Manning roughness coefficient was used as a calibration parameter. The comparison of numerical results with observed data confirms more stability and accuracy of applied numerical schemes in rising limb phase than in the falling limb phase. These results provide information on flood forecasting and monitoring of changes in the magnitude of the flow in Wadi Mekerra. Semiaridné oblasti sú charakterizované významnými občasnými dažďami. Vyskytujú sa spravidla v jeseni a spôsobujú devastačné povodne. Povodne vo Wadi Mekerra v meste Sidi Bel Abbes (severozápadné Alžírsko) sú často problémom pre výskumníkov a vládnych úradníkov. Práca analyzuje devastačné povodne v tomto povodí. Okrem toho sa uvádzajú najdôležitejšie hydromorfomertrické charakteristiky a výsledky simulácií povodňovej vlny. Simulácia je aplikáciou Godunovovej schémy prvého rádu a Monotonickej centrálnej schémy druhého rádu. Ako kalibračný parameter bol použitý Manningov súčiniteľ drsnosti. Porovnanie simulovaných a pozorovaných údajov potvrdzuje väčšiu stabilitu a presnosť počas rastúcej vetvy prietokovej vlny, ako je tomu v klesajúcej fáze. Tieto výsledky sú informáciou o možnostiach predpovede a monitoringu povodní vo Wadi Mekerra.

Wadis are a vital source of water in most arid and semi-arid countries. Catastrophic flash floods occurring in wadis are a threat to many societies. The Wadi Mekerra basin in the North-West of Algeria represents one of these semi-arid regions the most affected by floods and has been always one of the main concerns of managers in Sidi Bel Abbes province. In this work, we present the main climatic and hydromorphometric features of Wadi Mekerra watershed. We discuss the main factors that cause flooding in the studied catchment. A hydraulic model based on the RungeKutta Discontinuous Galerkin (RKDG) finite element scheme and a limited (existing) field data was applied and compared with measured flow data. The objective was to assess whether a reliable hydraulic flood routing model of a Wadi in a semi-arid region could be developed, with limited cross section data supplemented by topographic map information. A comparison between the measured and simulated results shows that the model used is appropriate for determining the flood hydrograph at the outlet of the watercourse.

Hydrodynamic modelling is used to analyse the inundation behaviour of Sidi Bel Abbes city (North-West of Algeria) during extreme flood events. The study reach, 5.4 km in length, is a section of Wadi Mekerra through Sidi Bel Abbes city. Land and bathymetric surveys were used to create a digital terrain model (DTM) of the river channel and the floodplain. By coupling the geometry with hydrologic data, a two dimensional hydrodynamic model was built. The model is based on integrating Saint-Venant shallow waters (depth averaged) equations through Runge–Kutta discontinuous Galerkin numerical scheme. It was calibrated in terms of roughness coefficients on measured values of water surface elevation and discharge registered in the Sidi Bel Abbes gauging station. The objective is to draw the flood maps under extreme river flood event. The results are helpful for local authorities in order to take the appropriate defence measures in the future.

No abstract