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Streets, Highways & Bridges
How a new system in Dickinson, N.D., gives residents real-time flood alerts By MARY JANE BOGLE | The Municipal
Most people underestimate the height of standing water in roadways and the speed at which water can rise in sudden storms. Unfortunately, that water can do real damage to vehicles — or to the drivers and passengers themselves. We’ve all seen drivers plow through standing water, waves splashing in all directions. Even worse, we’ve seen those same cars stalled in roadways — areas that were safe to travel just minutes before. According to the National Weather Service, all it takes is 6 inches of standing water to stall a vehicle, and 12 inches of moving water is enough to sweep a car away. Those statistics are a real concern for people tasked with public safety, especially if there’s no good way to warn people about high water in real time. Such was the case in Dickinson, N.D., at the Highway 22 railroad underpass. “Flooded vehicles were a real safety issue,” said Gary Zuroff, Dickinson Public Works director. “Our pumping system would get inundated and just couldn’t keep up with the volume of water generated by large storms at that location.” That’s why the city decided to invest in a high-water warning system, which it installed earlier this year. System design High-water warning systems operate through sensors positioned at the target water level. When these sensors get wet, stainless steel electrodes meet, essentially functioning as a switch that sends power to LED warning lights, triggering them to begin flashing. The lights continue to flash until the water recedes, turning off the switch, so to speak. These sensors can also send power to a transmitter, which can communicate with a city’s supervisory control and data acquisition system. The sensors are contained in protective housings and work in all conditions, including briny, brackish or freshwater. They even work When a high-water warning system’s sensors get wet, stainless steel electrodes meet, essentially functioning as a switch that sends power to LED warning lights, triggering them to begin flashing. Pictured is Dickinson, N.D.’s, high-water warning system. (Photo provided) 46 THE MUNICIPAL | JUNE 2021
