A storm surge model implementation and identification of coastal areas in risk of inundation, in the Mediterranean Sea.

Low-elevation coastal areas and their populations are at risk during and after the appearance of a storm surge event. Coastal flooding as a result of storm surge events is examined in this paper for a number of areas around the Mediterranean Sea. A 2- dimensional hydrodynamic model has been implemented in the region, calculating the sea level altimetry in a 1/10ox1/10o grid. The sea level rise due to storm surge events is examined for the period 2000-2004. In situ measurements were collected from stations around the Mediterranean coasts, which were compared with the simulation results and several parameters of the model have been tested and calibrated. Potential inundation zones were then identified using a 90-m resolution digital elevation model (DEM). At these zones, the sea-level alterations were calculated for the study period, where the area affected by sea level rise of 1 m for various regions was estimated. Moreover, the implication of storm tracks in major sea level rise incidents in the Mediterranean was investigated for the studied period. The computation and plotting of storm tracks, was accomplished using an algorithm that tracked down sea level pressure (SLP) minima, recording their development.