Landslides

[Robyn Appleton]

"The causes of landslides are not a mystery to mankind. Layers of rock and soil such that rain running along a clay or rock layer can create a slippery surface for the weight of the layers above it is a common cause. A rock jumble from previous mountain building, broken or fractured rock easily dislodged. We have stated that the earthquakes man experiences between the periodic passages of Planet X can be considered aftershocks from the last passage, and this is true of landslides also. Mountain building rumples the landscape, so the land is not flat but has steep ravines and hill sides. Older mountain ranges are recognized for their rounded or smoothed appearance, because of frequent landslides distributing the rubble.

"As we approach another passage, another Pole Shift, the pace of landslides has picked up. Why would this be? Plates under pressure will put pressure on regions that contain rumpled hillsides and deep ravines, as these give more readily than strictly flat land, thus act as a weak link. In addition, due to the wobble, the weather has gotten more extreme, with drought and deluge increasing in extremes. Dry ground, suddenly flooded with rainwater needing to seek its level as runoff, will create internal water slides between the rock and soil layers that constitute the rumpled hillsides. Is there an early warning system that mankind could use? The trembles that soil about to slide emits could be detected, yes. These are not earthquakes, and have their own frequency. "

ZetaTalk Chat Q&A: March 22, 2014

[Derrick Johnson]

Mechi highway obstructed by landslide

• Roads in Dolakha & Sindhupalchowk at high risk

ILAM, JUL 01 - Incessant rainfall since last night has triggered landslides along various locations of the Mechi highway.

As a result traffic has been obstructed. Landslip in five locations in the Harkate-Kiteni section of the highway has stopped the road for traffic since this morning, according to Area Police office in Pashupatinagar. It will take some time before the debris is cleared and the road opened for traffic, said police inspector Padam Thapaliya.

Meanwhile, hundreds of travelers on their way to Ilam from Jhapa and vice-versa have been left stranded. Many roads in Dolakha and Sindhupalchowk are reported to be at risk of being blocked or swept away by landslides triggered by incessant rainfall since the past few days.

The 55-kilometer road section of the Araniko highway leading to Kodari from Bandeu of Sindhupalchowk is at high risk of landslip, the Division Road Office in Dolakha has said.

Hills above the road had suffered cracks in the earthquake and there is likelihood of severe landslide, said chief of the Office Kamlesh Kumar Karna. There is also risk of indundation by the Bhotekoshi river, he said.

The 92-kilometer-long Pushpa Lal highway from Lamosanghu of Sindhupalchowk to Miltikhola of Dolakha is also in danger of being blocked by landslide. Road sections in Bocha, Charnawati and Sakhine and in Bhirkot are at risk of landslide, said engineer at the Office Subaraj Neupane.RSS 

Source: http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/07/01/top-story/mechi-highway-obstruc... 

Google Maps 

[Howard]

Massive Landslide Causes Tsunami in SW China (Jun 24)

A substantial landslide triggered local tsunami waves causing 13 vessels to sink.on the Daning River, a tributary of the Yangtze, in Wushan County, Chongqing.

One person is missing and four sustained injuries after the landslide on Wednesday evening at 6:40 p.m.

An initial check showed all people onboard the anchored ships had gone ashore before the landslide.

However, one person, who was on the bank, is unaccounted for and four others were injured, one of whom is in a critical condition, an official with the Yangtze River Navigational Affairs Administration said.

The site of the landslide is only 110 km upstream of the Three Gorges Dam.

Sources

http://globaltimes.cn/content/928859.shtml

http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2015/06/25/daning-river-a-landsl...

[Derrick Johnson]

Landslide halts traffic on Pune-Mumbai Expressway

A staffer at the Expressway control room said that the landslide occurred around 10 am and large rocks blocked the entire Pune to Mumbai lane.

Landslide near Khandala tunnel on Monday morning. (Source: Express photo)

By: Express New Service | Pune | Updated: June 22, 2015 1:45 pm

The traffic on the Pune-Mumbai Expressway was badly affected after landslide on the lane towards Mumbai near Khandala tunnel on Monday morning. Long queues of vehicles were seen on one side of the Expressway.

A staffer at the Expressway control room said that the landslide occurred around 10 am and large rocks blocked the entire Pune to Mumbai lane. The traffic was diverted to the Pune Mumbai Old highway and work to remove the debris had started around 11.30 am. No casualties were reported in the landslide.

The staffer added that half the lane was cleared around 12 noon and the traffic was expected to become normal around 1.30 pm. The patch of the highway between Borghat and Khandala is regularly hit by traffic jams especially during the rainy season.

Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/pune/landslide-halts-traffi... 

[KM]

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Regional/2015/06/11/Landslides-kill-...

Landslides kill at least 15 after heavy rain in Nepal

An area in Nepal's mountainous northwest Myagdi district is seen being affected by a landslide, on May 24, 2015. - AFP

KATHMANDU - At least 15 people were killed and more than a dozen reported missing after heavy rains triggered landslides in northeastern Nepal, a local government official said on Thursday.
Surendra Kumar Bhattarai said the landslides, which hit just weeks after twin quakes that killed 8,700 people in the Himalayan nation, swept away a dozen houses in mountainous Taplejung district.
"We have found the bodies of 15 people, and around 15 others have been reported missing. They were said to be inside the destroyed houses," said Bhattarai, the assistant district chief.
"Ten people suffered injuries and police are on the ground helping the wounded," he told AFP.
Scores of people die every year from flooding and landslides during the monsoon season in Nepal.
Taplejung escaped serious damage in the April 25 and May 12 earthquakes, which triggered landslides and destroyed half a million homes, leaving thousands without shelter just weeks ahead of monsoon rains. - AFP

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/06/11/15-feared-dead-as-landslide...

21 dead, dozens missing after landslide hits 6 villages in Nepal

KATHMANDU, Nepal –  A landslide triggered by heavy rainfall buried at least 21 people and left dozens missing as they were sleeping at night in six villages in Nepal's mountainous northeast, officials said Thursday.

Rescuers dug out the bodies and searched the rubble for survivors in Taplejung district, about 310 miles east of the capital, Kathmandu, said police official Shanti Raj.

At least 24 people are missing but the number could be higher, he said.

[Mark]

School campers trapped by massive landslip

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=1...

A group of school campers blocked in by a landslip in Fiordland haven't let "avalanches" and torrential rain put a damper on their fun.

The 30-strong group of Limehills School teachers, parents and students arrived at Deep Cove camp on Monday for a week-long trip.

But a landslide triggered by heavy rain down south was discovered around 8am on Tuesday, blocking the road needed for the group's exit.

However, the students should still be able to return home on schedule.
Real Journeys Te Anau, which is in charge of transporting the school group to and from the camp, said the slip should be cleared by Friday, when the students were due to leave.

"Contractors are in there fixing the road and at this stage they are saying they should have it open for Friday so we're confident as we can be that the school group will come out on Friday as per their normal schedule," spokesman Paul Morris said.

[Mark]

Landslide-hit Newquay beach closed after further cracks found

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-33045491

A beach which was closed after a landslide will remain shut for the summer months after engineers found further cracks in the cliff.
In February, about 100 tonnes of debris fell on to the access road at Great Western Beach in Newquay.
Engineers believe there is a risk of further rock falls and Cornwall Council has closed the road at both ends - the only public access to the beach.
Cornwall councillor Geoff Brown said it was "very disappointing".
'Worst possible news'
The cracks have opened up both in the access road and on the cliff above the beach complex.
Beach huts have been evacuated and the surf school is thought to have relocated.
Mr Brown said: "It's the worst possible news we could have had, but public safety comes first."

[Starr DiGiacomo]

http://www.ticotimes.net/2015/06/03/travel-alert-landslide-complete...

Travel Alert: Landslide closes Route 27, a major highway to Costa Rica's Pacific coast

 3 HOURS AGO

A landslide blocks both lanes of Costa Rica’s Caldera Highway at kilometer 45 on Wednesday, June 3, 2015.

 

(Via Firefighters Department)

Transit on Route 27, the main highway connecting San José with the Pacific province of Puntarenas, has been completely shut down by landslides that blocked both lanes of the road.

Heavy rains on Wednesday afternoon are to blame for the massive amount of earth that dropped on kilometer 45 of the Caldera Highway at about 3 p.m. There have been no reports of injuries.

Traffic Police closed access to the highway at the toll station at Atenas and at the intersection to Orotina.

The most severe traffic congestion is now affecting travelers in the San José-Caldera lane, Traffic Police reported at 5 p.m.

Globalvía, the company that administers the route, recommends drivers use alternate routes through Monte del Aguacate, on Route 3.

[Howard]

Wyoming Landslides Bury Railroad, Close Highway (May 24)

The Wind River Canyon saw a number of landslides following heavy rains this week that has closed the canyon.

A WYDOT Maintenance worker from Thermopolis narrowly missed being engulfed in a huge landslide on Sunday afternoon.

Glen Thomas was operating a loader trying to clear one of the landslides when another began roaring down the side of the canyon. He was trapped.

“I was pinned in from behind when I looked up and saw another one coming right at me,” Thomas said Monday afternoon inside the canyon. “A rock the size of a boulder came rolling down and flared out the guardrail. I tried to back out of it but I was pinched between two slides. I turned the loader off, left it in the middle of the road, and got out of there as fast as I could heading north on foot. I don’t want to ever experience that again.”

Thomas said a Hot Springs County Sheriff Deputy was dispatched to pick him up, and found him about three miles from the slide site walking down the road.

“Walking through the canyon in all that rain with rocks coming down all around me was pretty scary,” he said. “I don’t want to experience that again.” He said it was about 4 p.m. when the big slide came down.

The huge slide was actually a number of large slides that came down in the same vicinity. On Monday afternoon, rocks and water were still coming down and crossing the highway and portions of the highway were severely undercut.

A Thermopolis resident caught on the south side of the canyon was 88-year-old Mary King.

“I moved to Thermopolis when I was four years old and I have never seen anything like this before,” she said of the numerous huge waterfalls and landslides on both sides of the canyon.

In addition to the closed highway, the Burlington Northern/Santa Fe Railway line through the west side of the canyon was buried in a half dozen locations, including one slide that ripped the rails from the railbed and into the Wind River, narrowly missing a number of empty train cars on a siding.

Sources

http://county10.com/2015/05/25/thermopolis-wydot-employee-caught-in...

http://county10.com/2015/05/25/rockslides-bury-railroad-tracks-in-s...

[Mark]

Six killed in Kyrgyzstan landslide

http://www.worldbulletin.net/news/159614/six-killed-in-kyrgyzstan-l...

Six people were killed on Sunday when a landslide hit a village in southern Kyrgyzstan’s Jalal-Abad province, emergency officials said.

According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, three children were among the dead and a further 10 people were injured when the landslide, triggered by heavy rain, buried five houses in the village of Suzak, close to the Uzbekistan border.

[Starr DiGiacomo]

Landslides block Kali Gandaki, locals flee for safety

• No casualties reported, authorities ask locals to vacate area

• 
• This photo posted by benionline.com shows dust from the landslide debris over blocked Kali Gandaki River.

• MAY 24 - A massive landslide has blocked Kali Gandaki River at Baisari in Bhagwati VDC of Myagdi district early Sunday morning.

  The landslip has buried 25 houses in Baisari. No human casualties have been reported yet. Panic-stricken locals in Baisari and areas including district headquarter Beni, Ghatan, Benibazar, Galeshwor, Pokharebagar have started to move to higher grounds after the river was blocked by the landslide at around 1 am this morning.

  Normally landslide is triggered by rain but in this case, the cracks triggered by earthquake led the debris to fall, according to experts. Rocks, boulders and mud are falling making huge sound

  Ministry of Science and Technology has declared 'high alert' in the settlements along the banks of Kaligandaki River owing to continuous landslides which have blocked the River.

  Flood Forecasting division of Department of Hydrology and Meterology under Ministry has appealed to the residents of settlements in the 7 districts below the landslide location  the river to stay alert.

  "A landslide based dam has been formed at Kaligandaki river approximately 10 km upstream of Beni Bazar. Residents living downstream in Galeshwor Bazaar and Beni Bazaar need to be in high alert," states a warning in the Ministry's website. "Parts of Syangja, Parbat, Myagdi, Baglung, Gulmi, Palpa and Nawalparasi districts in the downstream of this river also need to stay high alert."

  Nepal Police, through their twitter account, informed that the water level in the artificial dam created after the blockage of the river has risen by 150 meters. 

  Myagdi district headquarters, Beni bazaar, is said to be at the biggest risk due to the blockage as construction of gabion walls 3 kms from the confluence of the rivers on both sides has not been completed. The campaign was launched on 1998 and has only completed a gabion walls covering only a kilometre of Myagdi and Kaligandaki rivers.

• Locals have already vacated the district headquarter Beni bazaar and move to safer grounds. Transportation along Beni-Jomsom road section has come to a halt.

  “We have asked people to remain on high alert and move to safer grounds. Not a drop of water is flowing downstream. We are still gathering the full scale of the damage,” said Myagdi Chief District Officer Tek Bahadur KC.

  A chopper with six rescue personnel onboard has flown for Myagdi from the Capital. The team has landed one kilometers upstream and will attempt to drain out the water from the artificial lake, Nepal Police informed. Nepal Army, Nepal Police personnel and officials from the Home Ministry have already reached the incident site.

  Meanwhile, Prakriti Raj Joshi, a geologist with Nepal Electricity Authority who returned from the dammed river, said that the water level has been constantly rising as the security personnel have not been able to find an outlet for the accumulated water.

  Nawa Raj Sharma, UML lawmaker from Myagdi who is now in Beni, said that the continuous falling of debris is making it difficult for the rescue team to drain out the water. The chopper which flew into the district with rescue team has not been able to locate the exact blockage of water as its view has been blocked by the dust from the falling debris.

Source:

http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/05/24/top-story/landslides-block-kali...