1. Las Cruces , Guatemala Assessment Trip
Las Cruces Flood Mitigation Project
Las Cruces, Guatemala
,
Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders
Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
g j

2. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Engineers Without Borders (EWB)
• From a backyard conversation to 12,000
members worldwide
b ld id
• EWB mission statement
• Chicagoland projects
• Las Cruces, Guatemala Flood Assessment
L C G l Fl d A
Changing our World One Community at a Time
Chicago Professional Chapter

3. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Concern America, Local Partner
In Las Cruces since 1994 with a focus on:
• Healthcare clinics
• Training of villagers as health promoters
T i i f ill h lh
Approached EWB in 2008,
following a severe flood in
f ll i fl d i
Las Cruces

4. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Las Cruces Guatemala
Cruces,
Population Apx.17,500
2,800 families
• Ladinos
• Qeqchi
• Mam
• Kaqchike
Pi
Primarily A i lt l &
il Agricultural
Ranching Jobs
• Peanuts
• Sesame
seeds
• Papayas
p y
• Cattle

5. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Las
Las
Cruces Drainage
Ditch
Main Road
Cavern
Entrance
“El Tragante”

6. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
October 2008
October 2008
Tropical
depression
depression
produced 18 days
of intense rainfall

7. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
7,000 residents were
displaced for a month

8. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Flood depths over 10 ft
occurred, inundating
occurred inundating
homes up to their roofs

9. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Before During

10. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Only one well
out of 10
tested did not
contain e coli
e.

11. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Framework for a Solution
Framework for a Solution

12. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Most Important?
M tI t t?
Maintain a l
local perspective.
l

13. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

14. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

15. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

16. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

17. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
• NASA / USGS Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM)
• Aerial and satellite photography • Land cover
Land cover
• Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) • Watersheds
• NASA Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM)
• Tropical 3 hr rainfall (2.5 miles gridded)
• Guatemala Instituto Nacional Sismologia
• Monthly rainfall totals (30 miles away)
• Isohyetal maps (regional)
• UN Food and Agricultural Organization
• Soils
• USGS Caribbean Water Science Center
• Inter‐American Bio‐diversity Information Network
y
• Google Earth

18. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Rainfall (mm)
800
45% of the Average
700 Total Annual Rainfall
600 in
i 18 d
days
500
400
300
200
100
0
1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010

19. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
30
30 yrs

20. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Las
Las
Cruces
66
66 sq‐mii

21. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

22. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Low
Spot
p “Outlet”

23. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

24. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

25. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

26. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project

27. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Framework for a Solution
• Understand the Problem
• Was this an extreme event?
Was this an extreme event?
• What’s a typical event?
• What event significantly impacts the community?
What event significantly impacts the community?
• Understand the Constraints
• Limited engineering alternatives
• Lack of funding
L k f f di
• Lack of Resources
• Historic community issues
Hi t i it i
• Lack of national support

28. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Main
Road
R d

29. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
What’s Next?
• Project report (March)
• Fund‐raising
• Additional survey
Addi i l
• Final design, plans and specifications
Final design plans and specifications
• Implementation?

30. Las Cruces, Guatemala Assessment Trip
Engineers Without Borders Flood Assessment and Mitigation Project
Changing our World One Community at a Time
Chicago Professional Chapter
David Kendall dkendall@entran.us
Lee von Gynz-Guethle lee.vongynzguethle@aecom.com