Flooding

Flooding may occur as an overflow of water from water bodies, such as a river, lake, sea or ocean. In these cases, the water overtops or breaks levees, resulting in some of that water escaping its usual boundaries. Flooding may also occur due to an accumulation of rainwater on saturated ground. This is called an areal flood. The size of a lake or other body of water naturally varies with seasonal changes in precipitation and snow melt. Those changes in size are however not considered a flood unless they flood property or drowndomestic animals.