Here's The Difference Between A Flash Flood Warning Vs Emergency

As the name suggests, a coastal flood alert refers to flooding. But instead of accompanying heavy rain, coastal flooding happens when water levels rise in large bodies of water (an ocean, one of the Great Lakes, etc.), inundating areas that are typically dry.

This can happen because of strong coastal storms causing large waves and pushing water onto the land or during abnormally high tides, like king tides.

King tides are also often called “sunny day flooding,” because they can cause flooding when there is no storm nearby. The flooding is driven purely by rising sea levels and the regular astronomical tide cycle.

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(MORE: Sunny Day Flooding Keeps Getting Worse, According To New NOAA Report)

Coastal flooding can cause immediate risk to life and property, but repeated exposure can create long-term impacts like damage to infrastructure that is not built for frequent exposure to salt water.

Just like with regular flood alerts from the National Weather Service, coastal flood alerts come in multiple levels of urgency.

A Worsening Problem

Global sea level rise is causing coastal flooding to happen more frequently for much of the coastal United States, especially across the East Coast, according to a recent report from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Coastal flooding is now at least five times as likely for many of the sites examined compared to the 1950s.

As water levels continue to rise, many areas that typically see coastal flooding rarely will begin to experience flooding more often, and areas that have never experienced coastal flooding could suddenly be dealing with a new threat.

Sara Tonks is a content meteorologist with weather.com and has a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Georgia Tech in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences along with a master’s degree from Unity Environmental University in Marine Science.