Environmental Erosion Research Journal

The flash flood potential map for the Sarandchai watershed was prepared using physiographic parameters and the MFFPI model in the ArcMap software environment. The map was classified into five zones with very low, low, medium, high, and very high risk levels. To examine the relationship between variables, the Spearman correlation coefficient test and multiple linear regression were performed in SPSS software. Physiographic parameters were considered as independent variables, while the flash flood potential layer was considered as the dependent variable. The results of the correlation analysis indicated that the parameters of slope, lithology, and soil texture had the most significant impact on flash flood occurrence, whereas drainage density and slope curvature had the least influence in this watershed. In the final stage, the parameters of slope, lithology, and soil texture, which had the greatest impact on flash floods in the Sarandchai watershed, were identified and selected. After applying the respective weights to these layers, a new flash flood zoning map was created. The results of the zoning map analysis show that the areas with very high, high, medium, low, and very low flood potential risk account for 19.3%, 16.5%, 25.4%, 24.3%, and 14.3% of the total watershed area, respectively.