Risk assessment of heritage structures endangered by fluvial floods

Abstract

Floods have recently caused significant economic losses and affected a number of civil engineering structures in many countries including the Czech Republic. Various protective measures have been considered to reduce adverse consequences of flooding in future. Decisions concerning expensive measures should be preferably based on risk optimisation, taking into account cost of measures, potential societal and economic consequences and losses of cultural and heritage values in case of historic structures. Methods of probabilistic risk optimisation seem to provide a suitable tool for identification of the most effective permanent and temporary measures. Present paper provides general framework of the risk assessment of heritage structures endangered by fluvial floods. The total consequences may be assessed using Bayesian networks supplemented by decision and utility nodes. Further investigations of relevant input data including societal and economic consequences and losses of cultural and heritage values are desired. © 2010 WIT Press.