The most flood-prone cities have been revealed in southern Ontario

With $940-million worth of damages hitting the GTA due to this summer’s flooding, a new map showing the most flood-prone cities in southern Ontario has been revealed. 

According to an official report by the insurance group MyChoice Financial — on a national scale — 1.8 million households are at a substantial risk of severe flooding damages. 

Operating parallel to these numbers, academic insights from the Journal of Hydrology also indicate that, up until 2080, flood frequency and severity will strictly trend upward. 

Due to the shadow of these statistics, the team at MyChoice collected data via an extensive study to discover which Ontario municipalities showcase the most vulnerability in the event of mass flooding. 

Major variables factored into the study included:

• Daily precipitation 
• Annual rainfall
• Hydrography
• Geology 
• Ecology 
• Terrain characteristics
• Urban infrastructure

Results from the study concluded that the cities at the highest risk of flood damage in southern Ontario are Ajax, Ottawa, Mississauga, Toronto, Brampton, Brantford and Vaughan. 

Beyond indicating current risk factors, the study on behalf of MyChoice also looked into the roadmaps for flood protection budgets across Ontario.

Specifics in the data collected mainly focused on government incentives towards enhancing stormwater management, flood defenses and emergency preparedness for cities in the high risk bracket. 

According to the data, current budgets for flood initiatives in southern Ontario are as follows: 

As a result of these numbers, data provided by My Choice indicates that while the response from local governments is generally observant of present risks, there also may be some serious gaps that need to be recognized when it comes to flood protection across all high-risk areas, as flooding is likely only going to increase.