Exploration of flood lead-times through river level monitoring: A case study from the Vilcanota river in Cusco, Peru

Floods impact recurrently vulnerable populations in the Andean region. Anticipatory action approaches and mechanisms propose ways to reduce these impacts by acting ahead based on forecasting and monitoring systems. However, how much ahead in time can we take action with enough confidence? This is not a trivial question given the challenges of historical hydrometeorological records in the whole andean region. In this context, technological tools and approaches based on free and open source electronics have allowed new possibilities for hydrological monitoring instrumentation. By increasing the coverage in the Vilcanota river in Cusco, Peru, we can make empirical explorations and analytical estimates of riverine flood lead-times as well as historical flood maps. As a result, developments of early action mechanisms and early warning systems can be appropriate to what is feasible in such a context and similar ones.