HEC-RAS and ArcGIS model a flood resilience index for urban planning

Researchers have developed a Flood Resilience Index (FRI) that measures how well an area resists, recovers from and adapts to flooding, using an integrated modelling workflow built on HEC-RAS, ArcGIS and two statistical methods, CRITIC and VIKOR. The study, published in Discover Sustainability, applies the index across various hydrological scenarios to support flood risk management.

The team, led by Snehal S. Kanade with K. A. Patil and P. M. Raval, framed the work against rising losses from natural disasters. Citing the Asian Disaster Reduction Centre, the authors note that damage costs due to flooding disasters amount to approximately 76,953,527 US dollars globally. Resilience, they argue, is a novel approach to dealing with uncertain climate changes and flood risk, and its application in flood risk management is increasing as the concept evolves.

Methodologically, the study takes a holistic approach, analysing the resistance, recovery and adaptability stages of resilience rather than treating resilience as a single measure. HEC-RAS software handles flood modelling, ArcGIS supports spatial analysis, and the CRITIC and VIKOR statistical methods provide quantitative analysis of the resulting parameters.

Among the parameters evaluated, the highest weightage value was obtained for the pervious area parameter, indicating that the share of land allowing water infiltration carries the greatest influence in the index.

The results indicate that the FRI value increases by 21 to 78 percent when blue-green infrastructure solutions are implemented. The authors present the index as an effective tool for policymakers to plan appropriate flood mitigation strategies and to develop flood resilient cities. The article is published as open access, with the version shared early as a citable, peer-reviewed accepted manuscript that remains subject to further edits before the final Version of Record.

Subject of Research: Development of a Flood Resilience Index using HEC-RAS, ArcGIS and statistical methods to assess flood resistance, recovery and adaptability

Article Title: Flood resilience assessment using HEC-RAS and ArcGIS

Article References: Kanade, S. S., Patil, K. A., & Raval, P. M. (2026). Flood resilience assessment using HEC-RAS and ArcGIS. Discover Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-026-04918-8

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s43621-026-04918-8

Keywords: flood resilience, HEC-RAS, ArcGIS, Flood Resilience Index, blue-green infrastructure, CRITIC, VIKOR, flood risk management, urban planning, climate change, Flood, resilience