Floodways
In some places, it is difficult to prevent floods. in these places, people sometimes build floodways. A floodway is a path for flood waters to flow over.
In 1972, there were floods in Rapid City,South Dakota. Several rivers flooded the area. Buildings were damaged. The city leaders came up with a plan. They bought the land near the rivers. This was the land that often flooded. Most of the buildings were torn down. The land was turned into parks. Now when the rivers overflow, the water has a place to go. It goes into the floodway. No buildings were damaged.