Rice flooding expert available to discuss Gulf storm

David Ruth
713-348-6327
druth@rice.edu

Rice flooding expert available to discuss Gulf storm

Phil Bedient, professor of civil engineering and director of the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center is available to discuss flooding issues that could arise on the Gulf Coast from the slow-moving tropical depression currently in the Gulf of Mexico.

Bedient is one of the country’s most noted experts on hydrology and urban flooding. His fourth edition textbook, “Hydrology and Flood Plain Analysis,” is used in more than 70 universities, and he has worked for more than a decade to create and refine the Internet-based Flood Alert System (FAS) that warns of impending floods in Houston’s Texas Medical Center. Thanks to FAS, there was no loss of human life in the 6,000-bed medical complex during severe floods from Tropical Storm Allison in 2001, which caused more than $2 billion in damage. Bedient was widely quoted when Hurricane Ike hit Texas in 2008 and more recently when Hurricane Irene churned over the East Coast.

To schedule an interview with Bedient, contact David Ruth, director of national media relations, at druth@rice.edu or 713-348-6327. Over the holiday weekend, contact the Rice University News and Media Relations representative on call at 713-348-6774.