Members of ISSMGE Technical Committee 303 (TC303) have initiated the revision of the guideline What Can/Should Be Done Prior to, During and After Flood Disasters by Geotechnical Engineers.

Originally published in 2017, the guideline was developed as a concise and practice-oriented resource for engineers, local authorities, educators, and other professionals involved in flood-disaster mitigation and rehabilitation. The revised edition will retain its accessible format while reflecting recent advances, experiences, and emerging challenges in coastal and river disaster risk reduction.

The planned update will address, among other topics:

• the soilwater interface and its role in coastal and river disasters;
• riverine, coastal, compound, and cascading hazards;
• climate change and non-stationary design conditions;
• failure mechanisms of coastal and river flood-defense systems;
• reconnaissance preparedness, baseline data, and rapid-assessment methods;
• technical assessment of emergency measures during an event;
• rapid post-event reconnaissance, detailed investigations, and long-term monitoring;
• residual risk, rehabilitation, and verification of repairs; and
• recent international case histories, including the 2021 Ahr Valley flood in Germany and the impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton in the United States in 2024.

The revision is currently being coordinated internally among TC303 members. Further opportunities for contributions from researchers, practitioners, public agencies, and other interested experts will be announced as the work progresses.

For questions or expressions of interest, please contact:

Prof. Koji Ichii, Chair of TC303
ichiik(at)kansai-u.ac.jp :Please change (at) to @

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexandra E. Schueller, TC303 Corresponding Member
alexandra.schueller(at)icloud.com :Please change (at) to @