Final Report for COMET proposal entitled Development of a Site-Specific Flash Flood Forecasting Model for the Western Region

The general objective of this study is to develop a site-specific flash-flood forecasting system for the Western Region, which is capable of flood forecasting using radar precipitation input. This effort is the result of a collaboration between the researchers at the University of Arizona (UA), the hydrometeorologists at the NWS, and the scientists of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS). The hypothesis tested is: “A site-specific model for the Western Region (Western slopes of the Rocky Mountains down to the Pacific Ocean) providing specific hydrologic flash flood forecasts has the potential to improve forecast services of the NWS, leading to reduced loss of life and property.” I.A Background for the present study: I.A.1 Flash-flood importance Flash floods are defined as those that occur within six hours of the causative event (i.e., time between rain event and discharge peak) (NWS, 2002). In th