Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021
Abstract During the flood event in 2021 within Western Europe, many bridges were severely damaged, particularly in North Rhine‐Westphalia and Rhineland‐Palatinate in Germany. Within this study, a statistical analysis of the damages caused to bridges by the flood event was carried out. First, locatio...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2025-03-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Flood Risk Management |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/jfr3.13001 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849339584017596416 |
|---|---|
| author | Lisa Burghardt Elena‐Maria Klopries Holger Schüttrumpf |
| author_facet | Lisa Burghardt Elena‐Maria Klopries Holger Schüttrumpf |
| author_sort | Lisa Burghardt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract During the flood event in 2021 within Western Europe, many bridges were severely damaged, particularly in North Rhine‐Westphalia and Rhineland‐Palatinate in Germany. Within this study, a statistical analysis of the damages caused to bridges by the flood event was carried out. First, locations and damages of bridges along the rivers Inde, Vicht and Ahr were mapped. Based on these data, statistical correlations among the damage patterns were analyzed. Approximately 25 bridges along both rivers Inde and Vicht were damaged, while over 80 bridges along the Ahr were damaged. Notably, bridges located near residential areas suffered more severe damage than those in rural areas. In addition, the presence of debris played a significant role in damaging bridges. Although the bridge design did not emerge as the crucial factor, the bridge height could be determined as a contributing factor influencing the extent of damage along all three rivers. Also, the extent of damage increased as soon as overtopping of bridges occurred. Based on these findings, recommendations for the reconstruction of the numerous destroyed bridges could be identified which agree with existing literature. Additionally, recommendations regarding the estimation of 100‐year design floods and the implementation of clogging into flood hazard maps were derived. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9fd9cc4d702b405cb03d6bca3d91cf8a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1753-318X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Flood Risk Management |
| spelling | doaj-art-9fd9cc4d702b405cb03d6bca3d91cf8a2025-08-20T03:44:06ZengWileyJournal of Flood Risk Management1753-318X2025-03-01181n/an/a10.1111/jfr3.13001Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021Lisa Burghardt0Elena‐Maria Klopries1Holger Schüttrumpf2Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management, RWTH‐Aachen University Aachen GermanyInstitute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management, RWTH‐Aachen University Aachen GermanyInstitute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management, RWTH‐Aachen University Aachen GermanyAbstract During the flood event in 2021 within Western Europe, many bridges were severely damaged, particularly in North Rhine‐Westphalia and Rhineland‐Palatinate in Germany. Within this study, a statistical analysis of the damages caused to bridges by the flood event was carried out. First, locations and damages of bridges along the rivers Inde, Vicht and Ahr were mapped. Based on these data, statistical correlations among the damage patterns were analyzed. Approximately 25 bridges along both rivers Inde and Vicht were damaged, while over 80 bridges along the Ahr were damaged. Notably, bridges located near residential areas suffered more severe damage than those in rural areas. In addition, the presence of debris played a significant role in damaging bridges. Although the bridge design did not emerge as the crucial factor, the bridge height could be determined as a contributing factor influencing the extent of damage along all three rivers. Also, the extent of damage increased as soon as overtopping of bridges occurred. Based on these findings, recommendations for the reconstruction of the numerous destroyed bridges could be identified which agree with existing literature. Additionally, recommendations regarding the estimation of 100‐year design floods and the implementation of clogging into flood hazard maps were derived.https://doi.org/10.1111/jfr3.13001debris flowextreme eventsflood damages |
| spellingShingle | Lisa Burghardt Elena‐Maria Klopries Holger Schüttrumpf Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 Journal of Flood Risk Management debris flow extreme events flood damages |
| title | Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| title_full | Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| title_fullStr | Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| title_short | Structural damage, clogging, collapsing: Analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers Ahr, Inde and Vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| title_sort | structural damage clogging collapsing analysis of the bridge damage at the rivers ahr inde and vicht caused by the flood of 2021 |
| topic | debris flow extreme events flood damages |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1111/jfr3.13001 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT lisaburghardt structuraldamagecloggingcollapsinganalysisofthebridgedamageattheriversahrindeandvichtcausedbythefloodof2021 AT elenamariaklopries structuraldamagecloggingcollapsinganalysisofthebridgedamageattheriversahrindeandvichtcausedbythefloodof2021 AT holgerschuttrumpf structuraldamagecloggingcollapsinganalysisofthebridgedamageattheriversahrindeandvichtcausedbythefloodof2021 |