Wind surge: what is it, causes and consequences

As you know, the wind is a stream of rapidly moving air. Therefore, it is not surprising that in most cases it is the cause of many natural disasters. One of these is wind surge.

What it is?

Wind surge - a vertical rise in water level, which is caused by a strong wind blow in a specific direction. Most often, such a natural phenomenon comprehends areas located near lakes, reservoirs and estuaries of large rivers.

Wind surge is similar to other natural disasters, for example, clogs or floods. That is, when the level of the water surface rises so much that there can be a flood in cities and towns, and, accordingly, industrial and transport facilities are damaged, crops and other crops will be destroyed. For example, one of the largest cities has been flooded many times since its inception. Russia - St. Petersburg. The most tragic case is a terrifying surge in 1824. Then the water level at the mouth of the Neva reached more than four meters in height. A.S. Pushkin also mentioned this in his poem The Bronze Horseman.

Types of wind surge

Typhoons, high seas and wind surges are natural disasters that can occur at any moment. That is, there is no periodicity. Therefore, it is very difficult to classify them.

As a rule, such natural disasters can be subdivided only by consequences. There is:

Small wind surges of water that cause minimal harm. For example, floods unprotected from disasters farmland located on the plains. People almost always remain unharmed.
Large surges that cause significant damage to both farmland and houses located in the valley. People are most often evacuated from hazardous areas.
Outstanding and catastrophic, which can even seriously flood large cities, destroy material assets, cultural monuments, etc. It will be necessary to massively evacuate people and carry out major emergency and rescue operations.

Causes of occurrence

As already known, such terrible natural phenomena as surges occur in areas located near the sea, rivers, lakes and reservoirs. The main reason for the occurrence of such a disaster is, of course, the intense and prolonged flow of air moving in one direction to the shore parallel to the water surface, thereby causing undulating movements of water. But in addition to this, there are other important reasons for wind surges:

Seiche - waves that do not move in the direction of the coast and arise in enclosed bodies of water. Their height can reach from eight to twelve meters. Subsequently, such waves become the main "destructive elements" of the wind surge.
Baric rise in sea level, usually from one to two meters.
The appearance of long and short water waves in the center of the cyclone, with a height of eight to twelve meters.

Hazards

Of particular danger to people are high water waves and wind surges when:

The rise of water and the flow rate sharply increase. This can lead to flooding of large territories, including productive fields, the destruction of residential and industrial buildings, and even the death of the population.
Water temperature is minus or close to low (for example, in the late autumn period). People who will be in such conditions for a long time will be able to get sick or die from hypothermia.
The buildings in which citizens are located are damaged or unsuitable for living. In such cases, there is a risk that the buildings will not withstand the strong pressure of the water and collapse, as a result of which people will die.

Consequences of Wind Surge

The consequences of the wind surge will generally depend on the type of terrain, the duration and type of disaster, the height of the water level and the composition of the water flow, the number of buildings and people in the vicinity, etc. Therefore, the main result of such disasters can be: