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Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
DOI 10.1007/s12665-010-0551-1
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Flash flood risk estimation along the St. Katherine road, southern
Sinai, Egypt using GIS based morphometry and satellite imagery
Ahmed M. Youssef Biswajeet Pradhan
Abdallah Mohamed Hassan
Received: 7 September 2009 / Accepted: 8 April 2010 / Published online: 27 April 2010
Springer-Verlag 2010
Abstract Flash floods are considered to be one of the
worst weather-related natural disasters. They are dangerous
because they are sudden and are highly unpredictable fol-
lowing brief spells of heavy rain. Several qualitative
methods exist in the literature for the estimations of the risk
level of flash flood hazard within a watershed. This paper
presents the utilization of remote sensing data such as
enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM?), Shuttle Radar
Topography Mission (SRTM), coupled with geological,
geomorphological, and field data in a GIS environment for
the estimation of the flash flood risk along the Feiran
Katherine road, southern Sinai, Egypt. This road is a vital
corridor for the tourists visiting here for religious purposes
(St. Katherine monastery) and is subjected to frequent flash
floods, causing heavy damage to man-made features. In this
paper, morphometric analyses have been used to estimate
the flash flood risk levels of sub-watersheds within the Wadi
Feiran basin. First, drainage characteristics are captured by
a set of parameters relevant to the flash flood risk. Further,
comparison between the effectiveness of the sub-basins has
been performed in order to understand the active ones.
A detailed geomorphological map for the most hazardous
A. M. Youssef
Department of Geological Hazards,
Applied Geology section, Saudi Geological Survey,
P.O.Box 54141, Jeddah 21514, Saudi Arabia
e-mail: amyoussef70@yahoo.com; Ahmed.AM@sgs.org.sa
B. Pradhan (&)
Faculty of Forestry, Geo and Hydro-Science,
Dresden University of Technology, 01062 Dresden, Germany
e-mail: Biswajeet.Pradhan@mailbox.tu-dresden.de;
biswajeet@mailcity.com; biswajeet24@gmail.com
A. M. Youssef  A. M. Hassan
Department of Geology, Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt
sub-basins is presented. In addition, a map identifying
sensitive sections is constructed for the FeiranKatherine
road. Finally, the most influenced factors for both flash
flood hazard and critical sensitive zones have been dis-
cussed. The results of this study can initiate appropriate
measures to mitigate the probable hazards in the area.
Keywords Flash floods  Risk  Landsat ETM 
SRTM  GIS  Egypt  Geomorphology  Morphometry 
Remote sensing
Introduction
With the rapid growth in population, tourist activities, and
immense pressure on existing facilities, today infrastructures
such as roads are extending into hazard prone regions. The
consequence is that the magnitude of the impact of a disaster
increases since it is dependent on the susceptibility of the
land and the vulnerability of the society (Verstappen 1995).
The vulnerability is also compounded with the increasing
complexity of interdependent systems (Comfort 1999).
Natural disasters occur frequently and their impact and fre-
quency seem to have greatly increased in recent decades,
mostly because of environmental degradation, such as
deforestation, intensified land use, and the increasing pop-
ulation (Vincent 1997; Pradhan 2010a; Pradhan and Lee
2010a, b, c). With todays complexity of society, response,
and relief from disasters have become a serious concern.
Therefore, there is a need to shift to mitigation, which entails
activities that strive to reduce the number of hazards and/or
their impact before disasters happen (Comfort 1999).
Floods and/or flash floods are among the most cata-
strophic natural hazards in the world causing the largest
amount of deaths and property damage (CEOS 2003).
123
612
Floods can influence many aspects of human life due to
their destructive effects and create significant expenses on
mitigation efforts. Heavy rains, land-use change in basin
areas and various engineering applications contribute to the
magnitude and frequency of flood events.
Recently, problems related to flooding have been greatly
increased, and there is a need for effective modeling to
understand the problem and mitigate their disastrous
effects. Human activities such as unplanned rapid settle-
ment development, uncontrolled construction of buildings
in general, and major landuse changes can influence the
spatial and temporal pattern of hazards (Pradhan 2010b).
There are several factors contributing to the flooding
problem ranging from topography, geomorphology, drain-
age, engineering structures, and climate. Most floods are
caused by convective or frontal storms in which a lot of
precipitation falls in a short period of time. Intensity and
duration of the rain are the most influencing factors for flood
hazards. There are, however, other interrelated factors
which influence flash floods severity, especially in desert
areas. Saleh (1989) determined some of these factors
including rainfall characteristics, water loss (evaporation
and infiltration), drainage networks, drainage orders,
drainage characteristics, and environmental and human
processes. Hassan (2000) mentioned that frequent flash
floods seriously affect the highway and human activities
along the many areas in Gulf of Suez. Numerous other
studies focused on the flood hazards in different areas of
Egypt (El-Shamy 1992a; El-Etr and Ashmawy 1993; Ash-
mawy 1994). It is relatively difficult and time consuming to
perform the flood hazard analysis for a larger area from time
to time. Remote sensing techniques coupling with hydro-
logical, geomorphological parameters and GIS tools pro-
vide a good platform to combine, manipulate, and analyze
the information for the determination of potential flood
areas very quickly and more efficiently. In this paper,
among the various methods for flash floods hazard zonation,
the probability of occurrence of the most hazardous basins
has been calculated based on (a) various physical parame-
ters and their cumulative influences, and (b) knowledge-
based classification (El-Shamy 1992b). Therefore, based on
the spatial and temporal distribution of the flashflood prone
basins and triggering factors, it is possible to identify areas
with similar susceptibility to flash flooding.
Drainage characteristics of many basins and sub-basins in
many areas of the world have been studied using conventional
geomorphologic approaches (Horton 1945; Strahler 1964;
Leopold and Miller 1956; Morisawa 1959; Krishnamurthy
et al. 1996). Many researches have focused on drainage
basins and their geometric characteristics, including the
topology of the stream networks, and quantitative descrip-
tion of drainage texture, pattern, shape, and relief charac-
teristics (Abrahams 1984). Gardiner (1990) indicated that in
123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
some studies, the morphometric characteristics of basins
have been used to predict and/or describe geomorphic
processes (flood peaks, assessment of sediment yields, and
estimation of erosion rates). Morphometric studies include
the evaluations of streams through the measurement of
various network properties. Evaluation of morphometric
parameters could be calculated from the analysis of various
drainage parameters such as ordering of the various
streams and basin area, perimeter and length of drainage
channels, drainage density, stream frequency, bifurcation
ratio, texture ratio, basin relief, ruggedness number, and
time of concentration (Kumar et al. 2000). However, the
application of geomorphic principles to flood potential and/
or flood risk has led to a noteworthy amount of researches,
attempting to identify the relationships between basin
morphometry and flooding impact (Patton 1988). Identifi-
cation of drainage networks within basins or sub-basins
can be achieved using traditional methods such as field
observations and topographic maps or alternatively with
advanced methods using remote sensing and DEMs
(Macka 2001; Maidment 2002). Many authors have poin-
ted out that it is difficult to examine all drainage networks
from field observations due to their extent throughout
rough terrain over vast areas. Furthermore, there are often
numerous valleys, which are cartographically marked as
fluvial channels despite their ability to collect and transport
flow (Horton 1945; Melton 1957; Lubowe 1964; Krumbein
and Shreve 1970; Mark 1983).
In this respect, DEMs can be used to extract drainage
networks and basin extents (Ozdemir and Bird 2009).
Extracting drainage networks from DEMs is based on the
gravity; the water will flow from higher to lower elevation
using the steepest descent and it is assumed that there is no
interception, evapo-transpiration and loss to groundwater.
Automated extraction methods are the most efficient
approach when DEM cell size is significantly smaller than
the watershed dimensions. Also, in the recent years, remote
sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) have
been embedded in the evaluation of the geo-environmental
hazards. According to Verstappen (1995), the purposes of
using remote sensing are to investigate the susceptibility of
the land and the vulnerability of the society, to construct
hazard zoning maps and potential damage maps, to monitor
potential hazards, and to deal with emergency situations
after a disaster (Skilodimou et al. 2003; Chen et al. 2009).
Many research studies have been completed that employ
remote sensing as the principal information source in the
assessment of hazards/disasters. There have been many
studies on flood hazard and risk mapping using remote
sensing data and GIS tools. Radar remote sensing data have
been extensively used for flood monitoring across globe
(Hess et al. 1995; Hess et al. 1990; Le Toan et al. 1997) and
many of these studies have applied probabilistic methods
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
(Landau et al. 2000; Horritt and Bates 2002; Pradhan and
Shafie 2009; Pradhan 2009, 2010b; Pradhan et al. 2009;
Bhuyian et al. 2009). Hydrological and stochastic rainfall
method for flood susceptibility mapping has been employed
in other areas (Blazkova and Beven 1997; Cunderlik and
Burn 2002; Haeng et al. 2001; Nageshwar and Bhagabat
1997; Yakoo et al. 2001). Flood susceptibility mapping using
GIS and neural network methods have been applied in var-
ious case studies (Sanyal and Lu 2004, 2005; Townsend and
Walsh 1998; Profeti and Machintosh 1997; Zerger 2002).
The research conducted in this paper is focused on the
safety assessment along a strategic corridor of Feiran
Kathrine road where the most famous monument is located
at Kathrine area. In the current study, the morphometric
analyses have been combined with watershed geomor-
phologic characteristics to estimate the flash flood risk
levels of sub-watersheds within the watershed. These
characteristics are the drainage network and drainage
watershed (basin). Each characteristic is captured by a set
of network and basin parameters that are relevant to the
flash flood risk. In this study, the Feiran basin was divided
into sub-basins. The drainage networks of the sub-basins
were extracted from the DEM. The authors have attempted
to operationalize a working methodology considering the
geo-environmental parameters having main impact on the
safety assessment at the Wadi Feiran Highway. This spe-
cific site is being selected because of its importance for the
tourist activities especially for the famous Katherine
monument. The entire basin was analyzed to develop
models for mapping the highway areas that are prone to
flash flood disasters using remotely sensed data and GIS. In
Fig. 1 a Map showing the
Location of the Feiran basin
(red polygon) in relation to
Sinai Peninsula and Eastern
Desert of Egypt;
b Physiographic features of the
study area. Note, white circle is
the location of Feiran city;
c Location of photographs taken
and is shown in Fig. 3
Table 1 Climatic data 19662000
Station Latitude Longitude Height (m)
Kathrine 28380 33590 1570
Egyptian Meteorological Authority 2000 database
613
this study, remote sensing and GIS have advantages over
the conventional methods that use the topographic maps to
delineate the drainage lines and basins. It saves time and
also the results are suitable for this kind of flood analysis.
Study area characteristics
Wadi Feiran is one of the principal drainage systems in
southern Sinai province which drains into the Gulf of Suez
(Fig. 1). It trends nearly in an EW direction (Moneim
2005). The Wadi Feiran basin covers an area of approxi-
mately 1,800 km2. Through its course from east to west, it
dissects a variety of terrains ranging in age from Pre-
cambrian to Quaternary.
The southern Sinai highways specifically the FeiranSt.
Katherine road (Wadi Feiran road) is located in the
mountainous section, which passes through Wadi Feiran.
The length of the studied highways is running for
*105 km (Fig. 1). This highway is heavily used by
thousands of tourists annually, which underlines its sig-
nificance in connecting this rugged landscape to the
mainland, as well as the people who live in some Oases
along Wadi Feiran road which is the only access to St.
Katherine area from the west side.
The climate of the area is characterized by hot summers
and warm winters. The minimum and maximum tempera-
tures in the Katharine Station are 13 and 34C, respec-
tively. The annual relative humidity varies between 46 and
54%. The average annual rainfall is between 1.6 and
21.5 mm. The highest recorded rainfall in the studied area
Annual rainfall (mm) Maximum rainfall in 1 day (mm)
1.621.5 76.2
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614
is 76.2 mm. Table 1 summarizes the climatic data for the
years 19662000 for the studied area.
Southern Sinai Peninsula is a part of the Arabo-Nubian
massif which is made up of the igneous and metamorphic
rocks. This massive shield extends to the eastern part of the
Eastern Desert across the Gulf of Suez. It consists of many
faulted blocks whose geomorphology is closely connected
with the geological structures. This massif shield is dis-
sected by numerous incised wadis with steep sides. A few
of these drainage lines are smooth concave, but most of
them are steep. Their floors consist of bare rock, and their
longitudinal profiles are obstructed by knickpoints in dry
waterfalls and cataracts. Drainage in the horst block of
southern Sinai is towards the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of
Aqaba. Wadi Feiran is the main drainage which dissects
southern Sinai Province and drains westwards towards the
Gulf of Suez. In its eastern part, it drains a relatively large
catchment area of high relief granitic rocks through three
main tributaries called Wadi El Akhdar, Wadi El Sheikh,
and Wadi Sulaf which joined at Feiran Oases.
Geomorphologically, the study area can be categorized
into two distinctive zones, each of which has its own
geomorphological and geological features, including upper
and lower zones. The upper zone represents the main
catchment area along the upstream side. It is characterized
by high relief mountains such as Gabal Musa, Gabal Ser-
bal, Gabal Banat, Gabal Tarboush, and Gabal Mukattab,
some of them reach 2,700 m asl (Figs. 1b, 2). This zone is
mainly composed of granitic rocks, migmatites, gneisses,
synorogenic granitoids, and gabbrodiorite intrusions that
are intruded by post orogenic granites. Minor fabric such as
folding lineation and foliations are observed. The lower
zone is characterized by low relief mountainous terrain and
gentle wide tributaries (Figs. 1, 2). Along the downstream
side, near the mouth of the main wadi trunk, a huge suc-
cession of sedimentary rocks of a Phanerozoic age is
observed (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2 Geological map of the
study area
123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
The wadi Feiran road represents the only highway
connecting the Gulf of Suez road (from the west) with the
Katharine City and Gulf of Aqaba (from the east). Also the
Feiran Basin represents the main drainage basin, in which
the Wadi Feiran discharges its water to the Gulf of Suez.
This road and some villages have been subjected to flash
floods once or twice annually, especially in the spring and
autumn. In recent years, the frequency of flash floods
increased and caused significant damage to the infrastruc-
ture and other facilities in the area (Fig. 3). Some of these
flood events have occurred in the year 1994 and 2005. It
caused severe damage to the economy, urban areas, infra-
structural facilities, and road (Fig. 3).
Materials and methodology
In the current research, different types of data have been
used which includes (1) Shuttle Radar Topography Mission
(SRTM) data, with 90 m spatial resolution; (2) Landsat
ETM? data with 30 m spatial resolution (band 1, 2, 3 and
4) was used to outline the surface features of the study area
and to verify the drainage networks extracted from the
SRTM; (3) Geological and topographic maps with the
working scale of 1:250,000 and 1:50,000, respectively,
were used to understand the different unit distribution in
the study area. Additional information about the study area
was gathered by conducting ground/aerial reconnaissance
to collect different erosion features along the studied area
and to identify the zones affected by the flash floods.
The Arc Hydro tool of ArcGIS 9.2 has been used to
create a basis for obtaining a deeper understanding of
the drainage and watershed system in the studied area.
Terrain pre-processing has been used in the processing and
creating the watershed basin of the study area (Fig. 4). The
digital elevation model (DEM) derived from SRTM data
is used as input for terrain pre-processing. Procedures for
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623 615

Fig. 3 Damages caused by the

1994 and 2005 flash floods in
Wadi Feiran area a, b
undercutting of the highway;
c undercutting of the highway
and the flood carrying large
boulders; d cutting under the
palm tree oasis; e damaging the
electrical lines; f cutting the
road and other surrounding
sediments

Fig. 4 Main drainage lines

perpendicular to the road and
has a high impact on the road
erosion (threshold 2000) and the
drainage networks of the Feiran
sub-basins (threshold 100)

extracting the drainage network from DEM already exist in The following functions (in sequential order) are invol-
the literature (Band 1986; Morris and Heerdegen 1988; ved in terrain pre-processing. (1) The Fill Sinks function
Tarboton et al. 1991; Gurnell and Montgomery 1999; eliminates sinks in a DEM grid. Sinks are formed if a cell is
Maidment 2002; Ghoneim and El-Baz 2007). surrounded by higher elevation cells; the water is trapped

123
616
in that cell and cannot flow. The function takes SRTM as
input data and produces a grid Hydro DEM as an output,
where no sinks exist (assuming no internal drainage).
Filling the pits is one of the most complex steps in the
drainage extraction process. It requires a substantial
amount of iterations as removing one pit may create
another one. (2) The Flow Direction function takes Hydro
DEM data previously prepared as input, and computes the
corresponding flow direction grid. The values in the cells of
the flow direction grid indicate the direction of the steepest
descent from that cell, using the 8 flow direction algorithm
of (Fairfield and Leymarie 1991). (3) Once the direction of
the flow out of each cell is resolved, it is possible, through
the calculation of the flow accumulation grid, to delineate
the drainage network of the study area. Flow accumulation
was calculated from the flow direction grid. Each pixel was
assigned a value equal to the number of pixels drained
through a given pixel in the flow accumulation. In the
current study, two thresholds have been used including
2000 and 100 to create the main streams and other small
streams for the whole watershed of Feiran basin (Fig. 4).
(4) The Stream Definition function takes a flow accumu-
lation grid as input and creates a Stream Grid for a user-
defined threshold. The stream grid will have a value of 1 hazard degree and the capability of the basins for ground
for all the cells in the input grid that have a value greater
than the given threshold. All other cells in the Stream Grid
contain no data. (5) The Catchment Grid Delineation
function creates a grid in which each cell carries a value
(grid code) indicating to which catchment the cell belongs.
The value corresponds to the value carried by the stream
segment that drains that area, defined in the stream segment
link grid. The Catchment Polygon Processing function
takes as input a catchment grid and converts it into a
catchment polygon feature class. The adjacent cells in the
grid that have the same grid code are combined into a
single area, whose boundary is vectorized. (6) The Adjoin
Catchment Processing function generates the aggregated
upstream catchments from the Catchment feature class. the risk degree. This group includes the following param-
(7) Stream links, where streams join together, were cal-
culated. This is followed by the interactive selection of
outlet cells, where main channels join the mainstream
trunk. Outlet points were utilized in the derivation of the
watershed of Feiran basin, and its associated main sub-
watersheds. The current research attempts to map the
whole watershed of the Feiran. It also provides the com-
plete drainage map of the area (Fig. 4).
The drainage systems of 11 tributaries of Wadi Feiran
which poses danger to the Feiran Highway have been
mapped and analyzed (Fig. 4). The morphometric analyses
of the all sub-basins of the Feiran catchment area have been
performed with the help of GIS. All the elements have been
measured and extracted from the DEM using Archydro
tool. Drainage basin parameters have been calculated using
123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
the drainage basin analysis program (Pradhan 2010b;
Pradhan et al. 2009; Youssef and Hegab 2005). The mor-
phometric parameters for all 11 sub-basins are listed in
Table 2. The following characteristics have been used to
describe each of the sub-basin. (1) Linear drainage basin
characteristics, which include stream ordering (Horton
1945; Strahler 1952), bifurcation ratio, total drainage net-
work length (Pradhan 2009; Carlston and Langhein 1960),
drainage frequency (Horton 1945; Pradhan 2009; Pradhan
et al. 2006), and drainage density (Melton 1957; Pradhan
2009; Pradhan et al. 2006). Aerial drainage basin param-
eters which are related to the stream flow and sediment
yield have been determined (Pradhan et al. 2006). They
include drainage basin area, length, width, and perimeter;
the length of overland flow (Horton 1945; Strahler 1991);
basin shape (circularity and elongation ratio) (Miller 1953;
Schumn 1956); shape index (Haggatt and Chorley 1969);
relief and relief ratio (Schumn 1956); relative relief
(Manner 1958); ruggedness number (Melton 1957); com-
pactness coefficient, lemniscate ratio, and length/width
ratio (Muller 1974); and hypsometric integral, geometry
number, and texture ratio (Chorley and Kennday 1971).
These parameters were helpful to predict the relative flood
water recharge.
Results and discussion
Determining the risk degree of the different sub-basins
using morphometric parameters
In this section, morphometric parameters were classified
into two groups based on the morphometric characteristics
and their relations with their potential degree of risk. (1)
Group I has parameters that have a direct proportion to the
degree of risk. The higher the parameter value, the higher is
eters basin area, circulation ratio, relief, relief ratio,
drainage density, drainage frequency, number of orders,
total drainage number, total drainage length, and slope. (2)
Group II has parameters which are inversely proportion to
the degree of risk. The higher the parameter value, the
lower is the degree of risk. The ranking score for different
morphometric parameters as well as the total score value
for each parameter are listed in Table 3. This group
includes the parameters such as elongation ratio, com-
pactness number, hypsometic integral, geometry number,
and shape factor. Based upon the previously calculated
parameters, it can compute the flash flood risk in several
steps. First, based upon the relationship between the
parameter values and the risk of flash flood, the analysis of
each parameter has been done using simple statistical
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623 617

Table 2 Morphometric parameters for the 11 sub-basins of Wadi Feiran

Basin Number B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11

A 314 344 333 42.2 210 86.3 24 12.5 32.1 33.2 30.6
L 30.8 48.8 32.2 9.5 21 15.4 9.1 6.6 9.5 10.6 10.8
W 10.5 7.7 10.8 4.4 10.2 7 4.3 2.2 5.2 3.7 2.6
P 148 171 170 37.2 115 62.8 32.5 18.4 29.2 29 33.7
TSN 1,728 2,275 2,539 151 918 405 112 59 96 105 97
TSL 925 1,212 1,688 86 810 254 69 37.8 80.1 82.6 73
R 1,673 1,660 720 683 1,041 725 434 357 347 245 315
Er 0.65 0.43 0.64 0.77 0.78 0.68 0.61 0.6 0.67 0.61 0.58
Cr 0.18 0.15 0.14 0.38 0.19 0.27 0.29 0.46 0.47 0.49 0.34
SF 0.33 0.14 0.32 0.46 0.47 0.36 0.29 0.28 0.35 0.29 0.26
CmF 2.4 2.7 2.7 1.6 2.33 1.9 1.9 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.8
LmF 0.76 1.7 0.78 0.53 0.53 0.68 0.86 0.87 0.7 0.85 0.95
LwR 2.9 6.3 2.9 0.65 2.1 2.2 2.1 3 1.8 2.9 4.2
F 5.5 6.6 7.6 3.5 4.4 4.7 4.7 4.7 2.9 3.2 3.2
D 2.9 3.5 5.1 2.1 3.8 2.9 2.9 3 2.4 2.5 2.4
BR 2.1 3.1 2.7 4.6 4.1 4.0 6.0 6.2 5.3 6.9 5.8
SR 0.34 0.28 0.19 0.48 0.26 0.34 0.35 0.33 0.4 0.4 0.42
SlopD 3.1 1.9 1.3 4.1 2.8 2.69 2.7 3.1 2.1 1.3 1.7
SlopR 5.4 3.4 2.2 7.1 4.9 4.7 4.7 5.4 3.6 2.3 2.9
RugD 4.9 5.8 3.7 1.4 4.01 2.1 1.3 1.1 0.86 0.61 0.75
ReRe 1.1 0.97 0.4 1.8 0.91 1.2 1.3 1.9 1.2 0.8 0.9
ReRa 5.4 0.03 0.02 7.1 4.9 4.7 4.7 5.4 3.7 2.3 2.9
TEX 11.6 13.3 14.9 4.1 7.9 6.4 3.4 3.2 3.3 3.6 2.8
Hyp 0.19 0.2 0.46 6.1 0.2 0.12 5.5 3.5 0.1 0.14 9.7
Gn 1.6 3 2.8 0.34 1.4 0.79 0.45 0.34 0.41 0.46 0.45
SON 6 6 7 5 5 4 4 3 5 5 4
LOF 0.172 0.14 0.1 0.24 0.132 0.17 0.17 0.167 0.21 0.2 0.21
A area, L length, W width, P perimeter, TSN total stream number, TSL total stream length, R relief, Er elongation ratio, Cr circulation ratio, SF
shape factor, CmF compacteness coefficient, LmF leminescate ratio, LWR length width ratio, F frequency, D density, BR bifurcation ratio, SR
stream retaining, SlopD slope degree, SlopR slope ratio, RugD ruggedness degree, ReRe relative relief, ReRa relief ratio, TEX texture ratio, HYP
hypsometric integral, Gn geometry number, ON stream order number, OF length of over land flow

method (Pradhan 2010b; Youssef et al. 2009). Each para-
meter is classified into five classes ranking 1 for low risk
and 5 for high risk. The equation used is (MaxMin)/5.
Then the values for each parameter are classified into five
intervals. For group I parameters, the higher the parameter
value, the higher is the rank. For group II which are
inversely proportional to the degree of risk, the higher the
parameter value, the lower is the degree of risk parameters.
It should be noted that the higher the parameter value, the
lower is the rank. Then the parameter values were summed
and normalized in order to obtain a morphometric number
for each sub-basin. Based upon these numbers, we can
categorize basins according to their risk of occurrence of
flash floods. After formulating this morphometric analysis
framework, the method was tested using El-Shamys
model. Table 3 shows the results of this method. The
interpretations of these parameters show that the sub basins
1, 2, 3, and 5 have the highest overall values and represent
the main dangerous sub-basins. Whereas, basins 4, 6, 7, 8,
9, 10, and 11 have low values. Also it is worth mentioning
that the morphometric parameters, which were used to
calculate the risk value, comprise a semi-quantitative
measure and not an absolute measure.
Using El-Shamys model
In order to evaluate the hazardous effect of the different
sub-basins, some of the geomorphometric parameters were
used. The degrees of hazardousness for each sub-basin
were determined using the El-Shamys diagram as shown
in Fig. 5. Two different methods were applied to determine
the hazardous sub-basin (El-Shamy 1992b). The first
approach uses the relationship between bifurcation ratio
and drainage density and the second uses the relationship

123
618 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623

Table 3 Ranking score for different morphometric parameters as indicate the suitable conditions for infiltration, thereby
well as the total score value decreasing runoff potential. On the other hand, high stream
Basin number B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 B7 B8 B9 B10 B11 frequency is related to impermeable sub-surface material,
sparse vegetation, high relief conditions, and low infiltra-
A 5 5 5 1 3 2 1 1 1 1 1
tion capacity.
TSN 4 5 5 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 Figure 5 shows three fields; field (C) represents basins
TSL 3 4 5 1 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 with a low possibility for floods and high potential for
R 5 5 2 2 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 groundwater recharge, field (B) represents basins with a
Er 2 5 3 1 1 2 3 3 2 3 3 moderate possibility for floods and moderate potential
Cr 1 1 1 3 1 2 2 4 5 5 3 for groundwater recharge, and field (A) represents basins
SF 4 5 3 1 1 2 3 3 2 3 4 that have high possibility for floods and low potential
Cmf 4 5 5 1 4 2 2 1 1 1 2 of groundwater recharge. If a basin has two different
F 3 4 5 1 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 fields, then the appropriate classification scheme has been
D 2 3 5 1 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 selected.
SlopD 4 2 1 5 3 3 3 4 2 1 1
RugD 1 1 3 5 2 4 5 5 5 5 5 Flash flood mapping
ReRa 4 1 1 5 4 4 4 4 3 2 2
Hyp 5 4 5 3 5 5 3 4 5 5 1 Flash flood prone wadis were delineated and assessed in
Gn 3 1 1 5 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 ArcGIS environment. As part of the research, this tool has
SON 4 4 5 3 3 2 2 1 3 3 2 been used to determine the sub-basins which are of high
LOF 3 4 5 1 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 risk. The final flood hazard map was produced with the
Total score 57 59 60 40 48 44 43 45 42 42 37 conservative values of the two previously mentioned
methods where sub-basins 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 are the highly
A area, TSN total stream number, TSL total stream length, R relief, Er
elongation ratio, Cr Circulation ratio, SF shape factor, CmF com- hazardous sub-basins. The attribute table for the drainage
pacteness coefficient, F frequency, D density, SlopD slope degree, basins was added to the GIS database to assist in con-
RugD ruggedness degree, ReRa relief ratio, HYP hypsometric inte- structing the drainage basin hazard map for the most haz-
gral, Gn geometry number, SON stream order number, LOF length of
ardous basins and is shown in Fig. 6. Due to the GIS
over land flow
analysis as well as the field reconnaissance, the most crit-
ical section of the road has been determined (Fig. 6).
between bifurcation ratio and drainage frequency. In gen- To determine the impact of the lithological units dis-
eral, bifurcation ratios (BR) range between 3.0 and 5.0 for tribution on the most influenced sub-basins, it was found
watersheds when the influence of geological structures on that the most hazardous basins are located on basement
the drainage network is negligible (Verstappen 1995). The complex which represent an area of 1,467 km2 (80% of the
mean bifurcation ratios in the sub-basins of the study area total area) of the Feiran Basin. Moreover, the most non-
range from 2.1 to 6.9. This result suggests (Table 2) that hazardous sub-basins are located on a sedimentary suc-
the geological structures have some influences on some cession which represents an area of 367 km2 (20%) of the
sub-basins (B1, B3, B7, B8, B9, B10, and B11) and little total area (Fig. 7a). The Wadi Feiran at the sedimentary
influence on other sub-basins (B2, B4, B5, and B6). section is wide and the sedimentary succession is very
Drainage density (D) shows the landscape dissection, thick which gives a high opportunity for the water to be
runoff potential, infiltration capacity of the land, climatic infiltrated and forms a groundwater aquifer there. It is
conditions, and vegetation cover of the basin (Macka worth mentioning that, along the Feiran Oasis section,
2001). In general, the low values of drainage density people dig open bit wells for domestic uses and these wells

Fig. 5 The hazard analysis due

to Bifurcation ratio versus
drainage frequency (left) and
Bifurcation ratio versus
drainage density (right) (after
El-Shamy 1992b)

123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623 619

Fig. 6 Flood hazard map

showing the high and low
hazard sub-basins in Feiran
basin. Note the critical sensitive
road section for the flash floods

Fig. 7 a The Feiran sub-basins

distribution above the
geological map. Note that the
line separates sedimentary rocks
(lower group) to the west from
basement complex (upper
group) to the east. Also, the
deeper groundwater wells are
located in the sedimentary
section. b Representation of the
curvature effect along the
critical road section of the
Feiran Highway

reach about 2030 m which indicates that the sedimentary
succession is thin and will be saturated easily. However,
along the sedimentary sector there are many deep wells that
get water from deeper sections. This supports the indicated
idea that most of the floods occurred upwardly and when
they reach the sedimentary section, most of the water
infiltrates to recharge the groundwater aquifer. This study
indicates that aquifers in the area are classified into four
types (Fig. 7a) including (1) basement complex (disconti-
nuities) aquifer, which is limited due to the density of the
discontinuities; (2) Quaternary along the wadis where the
alluvial deposits have filled the main channel of the wadi
and its tributaries with a thickness ranging from few meters
to 20 m. The other two aquifers are located in the sedi-
mentary succession (western part of the wadi). It is obvious
that there is runoff evidence at the basement section, due to

123
620
Table 4 Data extracted using Global mapper for the critical sensitive
road section
Character Values
1 Start height 773.4 m
2 End height 336.2 m
3 Vertical distance 437.2 m
4 Straight line distance 25.5 km
5 Length of true section 33.03 km
6 Slope 1.3%
the limitation of the aquifers, relatively steep slope, and
narrow width of the wadi. However, the infiltration rate
will be very high at the western sedimentary succession
due to wide width, gentle slope, and thick sedimentary
succession.
In addition, it was emphasized that the curvature degree
plays an important role in the hazard influenced zone. The
curvature degree was determined for the vulnerable section
in order to give an idea about the overall situation.
The curvature degree is determined according to the Eq. 2
(Ez Eldeen 1989).
Curvature degree %
road length in real  straight length=
straight length  100 2 potential impacts of natural hazards quickly and assist
where, the straight length is the length of the straight line
between the first and last point of the road path. The cur-
vature degree in this study is found to be 31.1%. Field
reconnaissance recognized that, most road parts were cut
off due to the flash floods along the curvature section
(Fig. 7b). It was interpreted that the high curvature degree
has a main influence on the erosion of the road sides due to
the change of the water flow directions. The flow of water
along the curved section behaves as a meandering channel
in which erosion is most influenced along the concave sides
of the road. The curvature of the wadi may act like the
meandering channels in which the fluvial processes cause
the erosion of the outer concave bank and deposits on the
inner side (Visher 1965). So, the cut off effect of the tor-
rents become more pronounced on the curved parts of the
road relative to the straighter sector (Table 4). Also, the
slope degree in this section is 1.3% which promotes high
velocity flow.
Topographic map of the study area is shown in Fig. 8a.
On the other hand, the DEM has been used to extract the
different geomorphologic zones of the studied area
(Fig. 8b). The elevation ranges from 0 to 2,600 msl. The
interpretation of the elevation zones in relation to hazard
sub-basins and the vulnerable section shows that there is a
major impact on this section of the highway due to ele-
vation where the whole area surround this section from
123
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
north, east, and south and are characterized by high
mountainous areas. The slope degree in some areas is very
steep and this increases the velocity of the runoff and will
increase the erosion impact.
Summary and conclusions
In the present study, GIS based morphometry and satellite
data were used for the flash flood risk mapping for part of
St Katherine road, southern Sinai basin, Egypt. In this
research, a morphometry approach, to estimate the flash
flow-flood area using remote sensing technique and the
GIS, was performed. For the flood risk analysis, the
probable flooded areas and the flood related database were
constructed for the studied area. Using the constructed
database, flood risk analysis was performed using mor-
phometry based classical approach. It is remarked that the
morphometry method is somewhat simplistic, and the
process of input, calculation, and output could be under-
stood easily.
GIS can provide powerful tools for the assessment of
risk and the general management of natural hazards. Nat-
ural hazard maps can be prepared to delineate flood-prone
areas. Such maps help the decision makers to assess the
further to initiate appropriate measures for impact reduc-
tion. Such data assist the planners and decision makers to
take correct and timely steps during pre-disaster periods.
They also help them during post-disaster activities for the
assessment of damages and losses occur due to flooding.
Moreover, GIS can aid in determining areas affected by
floods or forecasting areas likely to be flooded based on the
analysis of the drainage basins. Maps of hazard assessment
and vulnerability measures are easy to be prepared for sites
keep flooding. Thus, precautionary measures can be rec-
ommended in a timely manner in order to minimize
adverse flood effects.
Today, flood protection is essential. It complements
other preventive tools like the effective planning of the
growth of cities by creating a computerized GIS database
for the flood-prone areas. Detailed flood risk assessment
location maps are required to minimize the harmful effects
of these problems.
A set of barriers (dams) at various locations in the
strategic parts of each basin may be built to avoid future
flooding of the roads. The principal damaging effects due
to the flash floods in this area is mostly caused by the
transport of large boulders. The barriers will prevent
the boulders from moving, and will help to store runoff.
Figure 8 shows a sketch of the proposed dams which can
obstruct and slowdown the flood water current and its load
or to spill it through culverts and store it behind the dams.
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 62:611623
Fig. 8 a Topographic map
of the study area.
b Geomorphological features of
the study area showing different
elevation zones. Note the
critical section is surrounded
from east, north and south with
high elevation zones. Sets of
barriers to minimize the hazard
impact of the flash floods are
shown as black lines along
major wadis
Another way of mitigating the flash flood problem in the
study area is by afforestation. In addition, a warning system
has to be established to alarm people before the floods.
To understand the influence of the sub-basins to flooding
on the main channel, morphometric parameters of drainage
networks must be considered along with their hydrological
characteristics. This study reveals that a comparison of the
morphometric parameters within drainage networks
derived from the DEMs in order to determine the mor-
phometric parameters. Obviously the different values for
morphometric parameters will result depending on the
source used for the identification of the drainage network
and therefore this will affect the outcome of the sub-basins
influence on the main channel.
The results obtained are based on the risk value evalu-
ation with different morphometric parameters and El-Sha-
mis model indicate that sub-basins B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6
are high risk for flash floods and others are low. The risk
values have been tested using the El-Shamis model aided
621
with the field investigations. Morphometrically, sub-basins
B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6 have the greatest influence on the
road section. Therefore, establishing of the dams will help
reduce flooding on these main channels, but it may not
prevent from total flooding. Flood mitigation efforts should
be considered on sub-basins B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6.
Furthermore, this study indicates that systematic analysis
of morphometric parameters within drainage networks
using a GIS can provide significant value in understanding
sub-basins drainage characteristics with respect to flash
flooding.
Risk analysis was performed for the study area. These
results can be used as basic data to assist flood mitigation
and landuse planning. The methods used in the study are
also valid for generalized planning and assessment pur-
poses; although they may be less useful on the site-specific
scale, where local landuse and geographic heterogeneities
may prevail. For the model to be more generally applied,
more validation data are needed.
123
622
Recently, flood hazard and risk mapping has shown a
great deal of importance for suitable urban developments.
The results shown in this paper can help the developers,
planners and engineers for afforestation and land-use
planning. However, one must be careful while using the
models for specific site development. This is because of the
scale of the analysis where other causative factors need to
be considered. Therefore, the models used in the study are
valid of generalized planning and assessment purposes.
Acknowledgments This manuscript is greatly benefited from the
very useful remarks by the anonymous reviewers. Authors would like
to thank the reviewers for their constructive comments which helped
to bring the paper to bring to the current form.
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