Rockslide Closes Hwy 2 in Washington (Jan 10)

A major rock slide closed a 9-mile stretch of Highway 2 in central Washington over the weekend.

The rock slide buried the highway with over 10 feet of debris just east of Orondo, northeast of Wenatchee.

Highway 2 is the northernmost route across the Cascade Mountains that remains open year-round in Washington state, connecting the Everett area with points in Central and Eastern Washington.

Sources

http://kval.com/news/local/rock-slide-closes-highway-2-in-central-wash

http://mynorthwest.com/625/743442/Earthquake-tracker-for-Seattle-an...

UK LANDSLIPS - these from the last week:

A 'worrying' landslip sent mud and rock cascading down the mountainside in Blaina and residents are frightened

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/worrying-landslip-sent...

Probe follows landslip near Skipton Castle

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/probe-follows-landslip-near-ski...

North-east road blocked due to landslip

https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/scotland/scotland-traffic...

A59 amid landslip fears after 'ground movement'

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/environment/a59-near-harrogate-...

Teessiders urged to avoid popular coastal route after cliff landslip near Staithes

http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/teessiders-urged-av...

Landslip blocks north-east properties as wind and rain continue to batter area

https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/north-east/795418/section...

Hexham to Prudhoe rail landslide: 'Thousands of tonnes' on line

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-35260766

Southeastern trains delays: 200 tonnes of dirt falls onto tracks at Barnehurst station causing misery for commuters

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/transport/southeastern-delays-commut...

Southeastern trains delays: Services cancelled by SECOND landslide in three days

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/transport/southeastern-train-service...

River-Blocking Rockslide Floods Switzerland Town (Jan 11)

A massive rockslide occurred on a cliff in the town of Wolhusen, diverting the Kleine Emme River through the town, causing extensive damage.

Around 3:00am Monday morning, an overhanging cliff ledge plunged into the river creating an effect like a meteorite impact.

The rockfall was estimated at around 5,000 cubic metres, with a reported maximum travel distance of 200 metres. 

Buildings and vehicles far away from the rockfall showed impact damage from debris.

The rockfall dammed the Kleine Emme river. Water and sediment rushed down the main road of town, flooding homes, a school and industrial buildings.

The flooding caused the failure of three substations, with a transformer station in Sandmätteli left in standing water.

Sources

http://www.luzernerzeitung.ch/nachrichten/zentralschweiz/lu/luzern/... (translated by Google)

http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2016/01/15/wolhusen-1/

What is Up in Disko-Uummannaq Bay Greenland January 9-16, 2016

http://blogs.agu.org/fromaglaciersperspective/2016/01/17/what-is-up...

The arrow at location 1# is an area of sea ice across the fjord in front of Jakobshavn Glacier on January 9, that disappears by January 13. Location #2 is at the fjord mouth and location #3 is at the sea front south of Disko Island on January 9.  There is no real cloud cover evident in any of images.  Maybe low level fog in places. By January 11th a plume is sweeping from Point 2 towards Point 3. Notice the sea ice in the fjord disappears by January 13th and the ice front is pushed back in a concave fashion at Point #3. This indicates a clear push of water driving sea ice offshore.

Mysterious Earth crack terrifies residents of Aponte, Colombia

http://strangesounds.org/2016/01/mysterious-earth-crack-frightens-r...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJB2ajDb9FY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TqxBcl6DnE

What started with a small fissure in early 2015 is today a giant mysterious earth crack nearly a kilometer in length that crosses the village of Aponte, Colombia.

The crack has caused enormous damage to roads and houses in the village of Aponte in Nariño. At least 210 families are affected by this geological anomaly.

The unexplained crack in the ground is 1,200 meters long and 50 centimeters wide. At some points its depth reaches up to four meters.

The enormous crack has caused large damage to roads in Nariño. Only in Aponte 170 houses are cracked and have to be evacuated.

At least 210 families are currently affected by the growing fissure.

Results show that since December 24th the the fissure increases by 20 to 50 millimeters.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2016/01/26/6-die-in-southwest...

6 Die in southwest Colombia landslide

At least six people died and three more have gone missing in a landslide that crashed onto a rural village of the Colombian municipality of Cumbal in the southwestern province of Nariño, emergency management officials told EFE on Tuesday.

The landslide occurred in the village of Miraflores, located some eight hours on foot from Cumbal, where emergency management teams and firefighters went to take care of the injured, officials said.

Due to the distance and the rough terrain, there is still no official report from the rescuers, nor have the identities of the fatalities nor the causes of the landslide been announced.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3413272/Terrifying-moment-h...

This is the moment a trickle of stones on an Andes mountain trek turned into a huge landslide leaving hikers running for their lives.
Julian Insarralde heads up a mountain trekking team who guide visitors around the famous range on the Argentina/Chile border.
However, in this shocking footage he captured on a three-day trek, explorers were forced to scramble to safety when tons of rocks tumbled down the mountain side.

The video begins by showing climbers leaping over a rock-slide of around three-foot, giving each other a helping hand to jump over it.
The mood at this point is relatively calm, with laughing heard as the hikers appear to be pleased to see the flow.
However the width of the slide continues to widen, thus making it more of a challenge for the group to step onto safety.
Then comes the warning sign from one of the group perched at the top of a raised platform, and what follows is terrifying.

Erosion from waves prompts evacuation of cliffside homes in California (1/26/16)
Authorities blame the erosion on El Niño-related storm waves.

Authorities have evacuated several homes on a cliff in Pacifica, Calif., due to erosion caused by waves fueled by El Niño.

City officials have called a state of emergency and have asked residents of at least three apartment complexes on the cliff to leave as soon as possible, most recently on Monday, when 20 residents were told their apartments on 310 Esplanade Avenue were "yellow-tagged," indicating the building was no longer safe.

"Cavities in the bluff are forming to the south, west and north of the building and these critically over-steepened slopes are anticipated to fall back to more stable profiles in the next several days," CNN quoted Chief Building Official Mike Cully as saying.

The erosion has already caused the back yards of the apartments, located a few miles from San Francisco, to fall into the sea. Residents were allowed to re-enter their homes only to gather belongings.

Michael McHenry, who lives in the apartment building, told CBS San Francisco a balcony from the building next door collapsed onto the rocks below on Saturday.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2016/01/26/Erosion-from-waves-prompt...

Pacifica Coastal Erosion Caught on Drone Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzrymETf9hY

Mysterious burning crack releases gas in Chimborazo, Ecuador

http://strangesounds.org/2016/01/mysterious-burning-crack-releases-...

A mysterious burning crack is releasing gases since two weeks in a small village named Columbe situated in the Ecuadorian Andes.

The steam started coming out of the earth about 15 days ago after a controlled burn of weeds…

A column of steam and gas continues to emanate from a mysterious crack that opened up in a hill near Columbe, in Chimborazo, Ecuador.

The area has been evacuated because it is still unknown if toxic gases are released by the unexplained underground emanation.

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Sliding-House-Torn-Down-in-San...

Sliding House, Sold for $2M, Demolished in San Francisco

A house that sold for $2 million last year had to be demolished before it slid into other homes Thursday night, according to inspectors

A San Francisco home with sweeping ocean views that sold about two months ago for more than $2 million was demolished Thursday after a crack was found in the retaining wall.

The family that bought the house in October has not moved in yet, but was told by engineers that they would have to do an emergency demolition after the house moved more than a foot in just four days, putting neighboring houses in danger.

Martell, as well as other neighbors, had called the Department of Building Inspection to report a growing gap in the home's driveway in the sidewalk, and a massive crack in the exterior wall.

Inspectors say the house is on an active landslide.

City workers worried the crack could cause the house in the city’s Sherwood Forest neighborhood to slide, so the Department of Building granted an emergency demolition permit before it slid into another home. The house moved 14 inches in a one-week span, according to inspectors.

Inspectors said five other homes could also be in danger.

"It's for everyone's safety," Martell said. "God forbid that the house slides down the hill into somebody's bedroom."

Martell is trying to figure out who will be paying the demolition and rebuilding costs, but first the cause has to be determined.

The NBC Bay Area chopper caught demolition crews at work Thursday afternoon, as the house was slowly reduced to a pile rubble.

Downslope, water can be seen pouring out of the hillside. Other neighbors have also received notices to have their houses inspected by the city.

"The water pressure just pushed up the dirt, and the gravel moved by six inches or so," said Cal Nakanishi, who owns  ahome nearby. "It's doubled the width since yesterday."

No one is sure where the water is coming from or what it will cost to prevent more damage.

Demolition crews were back Friday morning to finish the work. They plan to leave the foundation in place, hoping that it will stop the hillside from moving.

At least 2 dead in Guangxi landslide (2/8/16)

TWO people have been confirmed dead and four others remain missing after a landslide destroyed a building in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region early Monday morning.

Emergency response office in Du'an Yao Autonomous County under Hechi city received information at 3:25am Monday that a two-story building in Fude village collapsed in a landslide.

Rescuers rushed to the scene and have recovered two bodies. Four people are believed to be still trapped in the rubbles.

According to local sources, it didn't rain when the accident happened. The cause is being investigated.

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/national/At-least-2-dead-in-Guangxi-la...

Guangxi

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3447916/Insid...

Inside the eerie abandoned Greek village that's slowly sliding down a mountain (and the former residents still pay property tax)

• Ropoto was once a thriving village in central Greece until a landslide in 2012 rendered all buildings uninhabitable
• Over 300 families were forced to move out of their homes as the houses began to slip down the mountain and crack 
• A recent tour during a documentary showed a ruined church, a school and a hotel that has crumbled into disrepair

This was once a picturesque Greek village - but it now lies forgotten and abandoned after a landslide a few years ago.

In 2012, the once-bustling Ropoto was turned into a ghost town when homes and buildings started to slide down the mountain.

Over 300 families were forced to move out of their homes and the plight of the village was left in the hands of nature. 

Ropoto was once a happy and peaceful Greek village - but now lies forgotten and abandoned due to a landslide a few years ago

In 2012 the once-bustling Ropoto was turned into a ghost town when homes and buildings started to slowly slide down the mountain

Over 300 families were forced to move out of their homes and the plight of Ropoto was left in the hands of nature

Flimsy foundations and steep inclines have been blamed for the disaster, which was first initiated by the village unable to push rainwater out to the surrounding stream. 

A 12-minute documentary produced by non-profit international Greek news website GreekReporter.com shows homes and communal properties sitting askew on the hills, rendered uninhabitable.

Landslide at Yaglıdere, Giresun, Turkey on 4 February, 2016.

Source

http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2016/02/18/yaglidere-landslide-1/

Landslide blocks road between Tyee and Umpqua (2/17/16)

A rock slide blocked Tyee Access Road 15 miles west of Sutherlin between the communities of Tyee and Umpqua in Douglas County, the Oregon DOT reports.

...Douglas County Public Works got a report of the rock slide from a Douglas Electric Cooperative crew around 3 p.m. Tuesday.

No one was present during the landslide, and no one was injured.

The cause of the slide has not yet been determined, public works said. ...

http://kval.com/news/local/landslide-blocks-road-between-tyee-and-u...

Sutherlin

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2016/02/18/landslide-injures-... 

Landslide injures 25 in central Peru

Lake Chelan - Washington

http://www.lakechelanmirror.com/main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSection...

Dry landslide sweeps Annapurna South; missing locals come into contact (2/23/16)

A dry landslide struck the base of Mount Annapurna South at Narchyang VDC – 1 of Myagdi district of western Nepal on Monday night.

The local people of this region have been reeling under the threat of possible consequence of more landslides and floods.

As the Ghlemdi Khola, a local river of the region is blockade completely due to the landslide; the people of the region have a fear that the blockade water would be turned into floods.

As the dry landslide occurred without any pre-signals, entire areas of the region including Narchyang, Dana, Bhurung, Tatopani, Shikh, Ghaar, Beg and Dawa VDCs of the Myagdi district have been mostly affected. The areas are enshrouded in dust.

The local people are not able to come out of the house and travel here and there due to the dust particles, the police reached there to rescue the people have said.

http://reviewnepal.com/national/dry-landslide-sweeps-annapurna-sout...

https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/annapurna-south-dry-landslide-m...

NEPAL: Narchyang landslide caused M 3.8 tremor

http://myrepublica.com/society/story/37607/narchyang-landslide-caus...

POKHARA/MYAGDI, Feb 23: The massive landslide that hit Narchyang area near the Annapurna South Peak in Myagdi district at around 3 am on Tuesday caused a magnitude 3.8 tremor, according to the National Seismological Center (NSC).

"The dry landslide produced a magnitude 3.8 tremor. Small landslides do not create tremors of this magnitude," said Lok Bijaya Adhikari, chief of the center.

According to him, a hill that had developed cracks due to an earthquake of May 24 collapsed in Ramche-9 of Beni-Jomson road section. "We cannot consider the tremor caused by a landslide as earthquake. Landslides and earthquakes produce different jolts," he clarified.

Shree Kamal Dwivedi, senior divisional engineer at the Department of Water Induced Disaster Prevention, said that huge landslides have been occuring along the Annapurna ridge. Landslides in the mountains are particularly huge," he said.

Thick clouds of dusts produced by the continuous landslides have affected normal life in Narchyang, Dana, Bhurung, Tatopani, Shikha, Ghar and Dowa VDCs. DSP Bishwa Raj Khadka, chief of District Police Office (DPO), Myagdi, informed that Nepal Army and Police personnel are having difficulties reaching the uplands due to the thick dust and haze.

Five people had gone missing after the landside but they later came in contact with the relatives, informed the DPO.

Landslide near Heceta Head Lighthouse State Park closes U.S. 101 until further notice (2/28/16)

The "significant slide," at milepost 178, 11 miles north of Florence, has blocked both lanes of traffic with more than 150 cubic yards of material and several large trees, according to ODOT public information officer Angela Seydel.

Crews are working to identify the cause of the slide.

http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2016/02/...

More on the Elk City, Idaho landslide on Feb 18.

“We were just up there doing some routine road maintenance,” said ITD transportation technician Bret Edwards.  The video initially just shows rocks tumbling down the hillside onto the highway. Then a larger piece of the hill begins to move, and you can hear Edwards shouting as he runs away from the massive landslide. The entire hillside sloughs off and the camera spins around.  When all was done, dirt, rocks and trees covered a 500-foot stretch of the road about 40 feet deep."

Source

http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/nation-world/national/article626...

Second hole opens in popular Queensland camping spot (3/1/16)

Just months after a sinkhole swallowed a car and a campsite near Rainbow Beach in Queensland, another hole has formed nearby in a spectacular case of erosion.

The hole –  described as a “near-shore landslide” – appeared at Inskip Point today.

It was triggered by the “undermining of part of the shoreline by tidal flow, waves and currents”, a Department of Parks and Wildlife spokesperson said.

No vehicles or property have been reported damaged during the formation of the hole.

In September last year, a sinkhole at the same area devoured 200m of beachfront, part of a nearby camping ground and number of vehicles and tents with it.

It was estimated as being larger than a football field and three metres in depth.

A report stated that the sinkhole was not formed as a result of a sequence of earthquakes around the Fraser Coast but by “turbulent tidal flows”.

http://www.9news.com.au/National/2016/03/01/15/41/Second-hole-opens...

(3/7/16)

Nineteen people in Bolivia have been killed in floods and landslides since the start of the year.

Heavy rains in La Paz are causing landslides and mudslides while in the Altiplano drought like conditions are ruining crops.

The village of Jupapina, near La Paz, was recently evacuated after a landslide destroyed homes and businesses.

Fourteen families have had to flee the village near La Paz.

http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/El-Nino-Blamed-for-Bolivia-La...

Jupapina, La Paz, Bolivia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mB3TLqUGRE

Two dead, five missing in Congo after collapse at Glencore mine (3/8/16)

http://www.nyooztrend.com/trending/366348-landslide-kills-7-chinese...

Three Trapped After Landslide Hits Hotel in Resort Town

http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/three-trapped-landslide-hit...

Three people have been trapped under rubble for more than 24 hours after a landslide struck the Club Bali Hotel in the resort area of Cipanas in Cianjur, West Java, in the early hours of Wednesday (08/03), an official said.

According to online news portal Detik.com, hours of rain on Tuesday afternoon brought down the entire 60-meter cliff behind the hotel at 0:30 a.m. The landslide also knocked down a five-meter water tank made of concrete that slammed into several rooms, trapping a dozen hotel guest beneath the rubble.

A joint rescue team consisting of officers from the National Police, Indonesian Military (TNI), National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) and the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) managed to evacuate some of the victims but three are still trapped as of Thursday morning.

The trapped victims are identified as Budi Tanuadi, 52, his wife Meilanawati, 52, and Bun Susanto, 35

Meanwhile, the other eight victims, including three children, who were rescued earlier, are now receiving medical treatment for their injuries at the nearby Cimacan Public Hospital. All of the victims are believed to be from Jakarta, a two-hour drive away.

Landslide Pummels Road Maintenance Truck in Northern California (Mar 11)

A state roads worker was given quite a scare Friday after he was dispatched to clear a mudslide on Highway 1 in Mendocino County and a second slide toppled his dump truck.

The unexpected wall of rock and soil poured down a rural hillside around 3 a.m., pushing the truck — and its lone occupant — on its side against a guardrail. On the other side of the rail is a very steep slope to the beach.

“He was able to climb out of the truck afterward, unharmed, just very shaken up,” said Caltrans spokesman Phil Frisbie, Jr. “On the other side of that guardrail, it is a very steep slope to the beach.”

The rugged stretch of Highway 1 about five miles north of Westport remained closed Friday afternoon while state geologists evaluated how the landslide might be cleaned up.

The truck driver was with a maintenance fleet out of Fort Bragg responding to a different slide in the same area when the landslide struck.

Sources

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Storm-watch-Scary-moments-as-...

https://kobi5.com/news/close-call-for-truck-driver-23592/

Rockslide in Spain Forces 180 to Evacuate (Mar 12)

Spanish officials say at least 180 people have been evacuated in the northern coastal city of Ondarroa after a rock cliff partially collapsed, threatening a row of newly built apartment buildings.

Mayor Zubeltz Bedialauneta says experts had warned that a rocky cliff behind the new apartments had shown slippage after nearly a week of heavy downpours and it finally began to give way on Friday afternoon. He says the local government decided to evacuate residents Saturday after boulders struck the rear of the buildings.

He says there's still a danger that the rest of the cliff could collapse onto the apartments.

City spokeswoman Leire Beitia says the latest tests showed "the state of the cliff face has worsened alarmingly."

Source

http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/rockslide-in-spain-forces-180-to-evacua...

Care Home Perched On Precarious Cliff After Landslide (Mar 10)

A massive landslide has left a brand new care home teetering on the edge of a steep cliff with several of the rooms there rendered uninhabitable.

The Cheval Roc Residential Home in Jersey opened to residents just last week, but already faces an uncertain future following the cliff collapse.

Elderly residents at the Cheval Roc Residential Home on Jersey woke up to the terrifying scene on Thursday last week, just days after they moved in.

Tonnes of land and mud was swept away as the northern shore of the island was hit by heavy rain and 75mph winds.

Ten pensioners who moved in to the property - which opened as a care home last week after previously being used as a hotel - will remain in their new residence for the time being.

Source

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/12193690/Crumbling-cliff-lea...

Landslide blocks Batote - Kishtwar highway

http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/chenab-valley/landslide-blocks-b...

INDIA  The Batote- Kishtwar Highway, connecting twin districts of Doda and Kishtwar with rest of the state, was closed again on Sunday morning when a huge landslide blocked the road at Ragi-Nullah - 21 km from Doda.

After remaining closed for 18 hours due to landslide and shooting stones at half-a-dozen places, the road was opened for traffic yesterday afternoon.

Today morning, a massive landslide and a huge boulder blocked the road near Ragi-Nullah on Batote-Doda stretch.

More than 150 passenger vehicles and those carrying essential commodities were stranded on both sides of the highway.

“The machines have reached the spot but the boulder can be removed only after blasting it," said SSP Doda Zahid Naseem Manhas.

“Shooting stones and torrential rains are hampering the restoration work but hopefully the road will be cleared by today afternoon,” he said.

http://strangesounds.org/2016/03/road-collapses-northern-california...

And suddenly the road collapsed in California.

A section of the 3rd highway between the settlements of Trinity Center and Coffee Creek (Trinity County) disappeared after the heavy rains that softened the ground on March 15, 2016.

Well too bad for those using the street. They will have to drive a 200-mile detour.

But if you have a four-wheel drive vehicle you can use the icy Trinity Mountain Road.

This will take up to eight weeks for traffic flow to be restored on State Route 3, with complete repair taking up to three months.

Massive landslide destroys road leading to Belaga

http://www.theborneopost.com/2016/03/15/massive-landslide-destroys-...

MALAYSIA: The town of Belaga is now totally cut off due to a massive landslide in several areas along the 37km Mejawah-Belaga Road.

The landslide has decimated the road some 15km from the town, effectively cutting off any motorists from using it.

According to Belaga assemblyman Liwan Lagang, the landslide occurred on Monday night and continued until Tuesday morning due to heavy downpour in the area over the past 24 hours.

“I am seeking immediate assistance from all the relevant authorities especially from JKR to assist in the diversion works of the affected areas as soon as possible as Belaga Town now is totally cut off from the outside world,” Liwan told The Borneo Post today (March 15).

He added that he has sent a letter to Infrastructure Development and Communications Minister Dato Sri Michael Manyin for immediate assistance and a copy of the letter has been sent to the chief minister’s office.

Liwan said an estimated 18,000 people especially those residing in Belaga Town are now affected by the landslide.

The video below uploaded to the Fire and Rescue Department’s Operations Centre Facebook page shows the road leading to Belaga crumbling away.

Road to nowhere: Dramatic moment enormous landslide blocks a motorway in China

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3498671/Road-Dramatic-momen...

The huge landslide blocked a national motorway in Hunan Province, China
Earth and poured onto the road, sending up clouds of dust
A queue of cars were forced to turn around but no one was injured

Imagine you're driving along a road one minute... and the next it's gone.
Motorists in China experienced this today when a major landslide blocked a national motorway.
Dramatic footage filmed in Yiyang, Hunan Province today, shows masses of clay and sand flowing down from a slope to block the road.

A queue of cars line the road as an avalanche of earth pours onto the highway.
Clouds of dust fill the air as the landslide covers the road.
Trees too slide by - almost comically - before toppling forward as the mass of earth slowly comes to a halt.
Faced with no other option the cars begin to turn around as the clip ends

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/article-3500386/Milan-San-Remo-cyc...

Milan-San Remo cycling race rerouted after massive landslide near Genoa

• Landslide forces Milan-San Remo race to be extended by four kilometres
• Several cars were wrecked by falling rocks near the town of Arenzano
• Frenchman Arnaud Demare eventually triumphed, with Ben Swift second 

Published: 11:48 EST, 19 March 2016 | Updated: 11:51 EST, 19 March 2016

A massive landslide caused the Milan-San Remo race to be re-routed on Saturday.

The first of the five so-called monument races was diverted between Genova Voltri and Arenzano, taking the peloton on to the A10 autostrada and adding four kilometres to the original 291km distance.

The landslide crushed several cars, leaving rocks and wreckage strewn across the road which was originally meant to host the race. 

Washington Neighborhood at Risk of Massive Landslide (Mar 18)

Chelan County Emergency management officials say a neighborhood near Wenatchee is at risk of a massive landslide at any moment.

Huge cracks are developing in the ground in a neighborhood near the Mission Ridge Ski Area. Water and power have been shut off to the Whispering Ridge Neighborhood.

Neighbors in the area have been asked to evacuate as the ground continues to shift and officials try to figure what has caused the potentially deadly disaster.

In the last week, the shifting ground has damaged the water line more than once. The county didn't think it was safe to put heavy machinery in the area to fix the line, so the water is shut off.

Neighbors who live in Whispering Ridge are so concerned they fear an "Oso-like catastrophic landslide".

Just above Wenatchee, the Whispering Ridge neighborhood provides a mountain top perspective. It's why Elliott Nelson and his wife built their retirement home there.

"It's gorgeous," Nelson said. "It's very quite here. It's very relaxing."

Bur for some time Nelson has been watching his neighborhood split in two.

"Every day that I went down the driveway I saw it getting worse," he said.

Chelan County EMA says unstable soil in the area caused a water main to rupture. It was repaired, but ruptured again on Wednesday. Crews determined the shifting land made it unsafe to fix.

"It's very unstable," said Rich Magnussen with Chelan County EMA. "We have significant ground movement in the area."

A geotechnical company has been hired to study the area and what they've found has forced the county to warn and evacuate the neighborhood.

"Our biggest concern is life safety, " Magnussen said. "We don't want anyone to get hurt or have any fatalities on this."

Residents in 26 houses have been advised to leave. Roughly a dozen could take a direct hit from what has been described as a "potential massive landslide." Two homes have already been declared unsafe to live in.

On Thursday, a home with elderly residents was evacuated. But Nelson is one of a few residents who decided to stay.

"There's no place that you are safe from anything," he said.

Officials say so far Nelson's land is not moving. Experts say the hillside could give way with little or no notice.

Sources

http://komonews.com/news/local/officials-chelan-county-neighborhood...

http://www.kiro7.com/news/risk-of-catastrophic-landslide-forces-eva...

http://mynorthwest.com/11/2936227/Risk-of-catastrophic-landslide-fo...

http://gbtimes.com/china/massive-landslide-caught-camera-central-china

Massive landslide caught on camera in central China

Multiple Landslides in Northern India and Pakistan (Mar 22)

A rash of landslides have hit northern India and Pakistan in the past few days resulting in a surprisingly high number of fatalities.

1. Susam, Chitral, Pakistan

A mudslide triggered by heavy rainfall killed eight ninth grade students returning from exams.  Some reports have suggested 9 or 11 fatalities, and there is some confusion over whether this might have been an avalanche. More than a week of rains across northern Pakistan and other parts of the country has caused 79 deaths and at least 100 injuries in mudslides and house collapses.

2. Ramsu area of Ramban district, Jammu and Kashmi, India

Five people died, and three were injured, when a taxi was knocked off the road and into a river by a rockfall.

3. Multiple landslides on the Jammu-Srinigar highway

Reports indicate that the road between Jammu and Srinigar was closed by landslides at Sher Bibi, Panthyal, Battery Chashma, Marog and Anokhi Fall, trapping more than a thousand vehicles.

4. Multiple landslides on the Doda-Batote highway

A massive landslide at the Raggi Nullah blocked the sole highway linking these twin districts.  Reports suggest hundreds of vehicles were trapped.

5. A rockfall at Sarli Sacha Sharqi village

Five people, including four children, were killed when a boulder flattened a house in Sarli Sacha Sharqi village, in Pakistan’s Azad Jammu and Kashmir, late on Friday night. One child survived.

6. A landslide at Ochar Mohalla in Bagh District

A couple were killed by a landslide at Ochar Mohalla on the outskirts of Bagh City. A child survived the landslide.

7. Multiple landslides in Murree in Pakistan

Reports suggest that the Murree area of Pakistan has also been very badly affected by landslides.  Dawn reports that “Almost half the village of Graan-Ghoe was destroyed when a landslide damaged 30 homes, and the residents have no other choice but to wait out the rain under the open sky.  Houses were also destroyed in Potha, Sehana, Phagwari, Aloit, Sehrbagla, Masot, Dewal and Phaphril among other villages, where roads and other infrastructure worth billions of rupees was also damaged.”

8. A fatal landslide at Jaglote in Gilgit

A woman was killed in a fatal landslide at Jaglote.  Pamir Times reports that: “huge boulders fell from a nearby mountain hitting several houses and cattle sheds. As a result a woman was killed. Around a dozen sheep, goats and cows, other cattle, were also killed. Three houses were damaged.”

Source

http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2016/03/22/multiple-landslides-1/

- March 29, 2016 - 10:40

Two buses in Pakistan were "trapped" by a landslide characterized by the presence of large rocks

http://www.meteoweb.eu/2016/03/pioggia-di-rocce-in-pakistan-autobus...

https://translate.google.com.ar/translate?sl=it&tl=en&js=y&...

Here is a great video and terrifying at the same time: two buses were "trapped" by
a landslide characterized by large boulders on the Karakorum Highway in Pakistan

On the way down the rocks acquire great speed, bouncing in a particularly hazardous.

Fortunately, despite the fear above all the occupants, there were no reported injuries.

http://www.dawn.com/news/1250052/landslide-buries-30-in-kohistan

Landslide buries 30 in Kohistan

April 5 2016

MANSEHRA: A massive landslide struck at least seven houses in Kohistan district on Monday morning, burying alive at least 30 people.

Kohistan Deputy Commissioner Fazl-i-Khaliq told journalists that widespread rains had softened up a huge portion of a hill which fell on the houses in Thor Nullah Bari area of Kandia tehsil.

He said a police team had been sent to the area to ascertain the situation. Locals also rushed to the area, but could not start rescue wok fearing more landslides.

Mr Khaliq said the terrain was very tough and recent landslides had swept away several roads and, therefore, he had requested the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to send helicopters for rescue work. Personnel from four police stations near the affected area were asked to reach there and take part in the rescue operation.

A police officer said that since the Karakoram Highway was blocked at a number of places in Mansehra and Kohistan, rescue and relief operations had become difficult.

He said 26 nationals of Germany, China and South Korea working on various projects in Kohistan were safe and they were in contact with local police.

Hafizur Rehman, a resident of Kandia valley, told reporters that local people were trying to remove boulders and earth which had fallen on the houses, but they immediately required heavy machinery, including excavators. “Huge boulders and rocks cannot be removed without heavy machinery,” he added.

TOURISTS STRANDED: At least 25 foreign tourists, including Chinese and Japanese, have been stranded in Besham area of Shangla for two days because of landslides in the Karakoram Highway.

The Provincial Disaster Management Authority asked the National Disaster Management Authority to dispatch helicopters to reach people marooned in Hazara and Malakand divisions.

“The provincial authority has requested NDMA to provide helicopters to start relief operation in inaccessible pockets,”

Latifur Rehman, spokesman for the PDMA, told Dawn in Peshawar. He said the district authorities needed helicopters in the two districts to distribute relief goods among the stranded people.

Torrential rains which started two days ago in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa caused widespread damage to houses and triggered landslides in Malakand and Hazara.

According to the PDMA, the calamity has so far claimed the lives of 47 people. At least 37 others have suffered injuries. Over 145 houses have been damaged.

Mr Rehman said there were several pockets in Mansehra and Kohistan where local authorities could not distribute relief goods because of want of helicopters, adding that weather was still harsh in upper parts of the province. He said relief items had been dispatched to district headquarters in the affected areas.

A heavy landslide hit a market in Karora area, damaging five houses, two shops and a petrol pump on Monday. However, no human loss or injury was reported.

A local nazim said landslides posed a potential threat to a bazaar and a village and people had already moved to safe places.

Frontier Works Organisation officials said the Karakoram Highway was blocked at more than 20 points and floods had damaged a bridge in Kayal area.

Flash floods had swept away dozens of shops in Serband area on the outskirts of Peshawar. The rising water level in Kabul river has forced a large number of families in Camp Corona, near Peshawar, to move to safe areas.

10 Hectares Vanish Overnight in Ontario Landslide (Mar 28)

Ten hectares of land slid into the Bonnechere River downstream from Renfrew on the night of March 28-29, clogging the fast-running river with trees and clay.

With the river blocked by trees and debris, water backed up behind the blockage. It rose more than seven metres near the landslide, and about five to six metres upstream in Renfrew.

Osipenko, who heads the Renfrew County Paramedic Service, could only watch and wait. Sooner or later, he said, “the river always finds a way through.”

But first the muddy floodwaters washed away a cottage, damaged a small hunting camp, poured water seven feet deep into a house, submerged the Renfrew sewage plant, and got into the basement of the hydroelectric plant.

Then after seven to eight hours the blockage finally broke loose, releasing all the debris into the Ottawa River.

As long as trees and mud blocked the river, a gauge downstream showed the rate of flow as zero. When the blockage burst, the flow jumped to 250 cubic metres of water per second — two and a half times the normal rate for a spring runoff.

Sources

http://www.ottawasun.com/2016/04/07/renfrew-county-landslide-10-hec...

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/renfrew-county-landslide-1...

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/a-massive-ontario-landslid...

http://www.sott.net/article/316233-Massive-2015-Alaskan-landslide-t...

After a period of heavy rains, about 200 million metric tons of rock tumbled down a remote Southeast Alaska mountain. The massive landslide, lasting about 60 seconds, occurred on October 17, 2015, and landed on the toe of Tyndall Glacier and into Taan Fiord in Icy Bay, Alaska. 

The event generated a local megatsunami that sheared trees more than 152.4 meters (500 feet) up on a peninsula within the fiord. It was big enough to register at the nearest tidal gauge 155 km (96.3 miles) away. For comparison, the 2011 tsunami in Japan reached about 39.6 meters (130 feet) above sea level. 

This event, now estimated as the biggest nonvolcanic landslide, by volume, in North America's written history, was registered by special seismograms monitored by the Global CMT Project at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory whose seismologists Göran Ekström and Colin Stark have invented a new technique that uses seismic waves to detect landslides in remote areas where they might otherwise go unrecorded. 

The site of an October landslide in Taan Fiord, within Icy Bay, Alaska

Since winter snows hid the damage generated by the tsunami it took several months to see the extent of the damage. Upon hearing a report from a pilot colleague that the landslide area of Icy Bay was free of snow, glaciologist Chris Larsen of the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Geophysical Institute flew there in his Cessna 180. Larsen used a camera system mounted in his plane to make a high-resolution map of the landslide and the path of the megatsunami. 

"It almost blows away everything in the historical record except for Lituya Bay," Larsen said. "It's really a unique event to have a tsunami 100 meters (328 feet) high. If it was September or any time in the summer, the wave could have gotten a fishing boat or two." 

Spruce trees shaved off a peninsula within Taan Fiord by a landslide-generated wave last October

The Lituya Bay landslide, Larsen referred to, occurred in 1958 after a powerful M8.0 earthquake. The wave that followed ripped spruce from 518 m (1 700 feet) up a mountain slope and left trimlines in the bay that are visible today. 

Icy Bay and places like it will have more landslides as time goes on, Larsen said. Warmer temperatures melt more glacial ice that buttress hillsides. When the ice melts, oversteepened slopes will fail. Sometimes it takes a big rain or an earthquake to shake them down. 

"These megatsunamis are infrequent in the historical record but will most likely increase," Larsen added.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3542347/Japan-rocked-second...

Devastating landslide rips a Japanese mountain apart: Death toll rises to 40 after second earthquake destroys roads, bridges and homes 

• Epicentre was near the city of Kumamoto and measured at a depth of 40 km (25 miles), say U.S. Geological Survey
• 6.4 magnitude quake struck Thursday killing ten, and 26 deaths have been recorded so far after the Saturday shock
• Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said it is a 'race against time' to find survivors and authorities say death toll is set to rise
• Landslides and road damage are hampering rescue efforts, 410,000 homes without water and 200,000 without water
• 400-year-old Kumamoto Castle walls - which survived a century of wall - were reduced to rubble the the earthquake  

Japan woke up to scenes of devastation yesterday after a second huge earthquake struck the nation, bringing the total death count to 40 and rising.

The 7.3 magnitude earthquake destroyed buildings and roads, causing massive mudslides that even washed away entire bridges.

More than 1,500 people were injured and 30 killed by today's quake, and authorities say they expect the death toll to rise. 

It struck just a day after another 6.4 magnitude shock, killing ten, and the country's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, said it is now a 'race against time' to find survivors.

Mr Abe said: 'Nothing is more important than human life and it's a race against time. Daytime today is the big test. I want rescue activities to continue with the utmost effort.' 

The exact number of casualties remained unclear as rescue efforts in southern Kyushu island continued, but they were hampered by the landslides that destroyed bridges and roads. 

Challenging: Rescue efforts have been made more difficult by the fact that landslips have destroyed roads and bridges in the region

Landslide: Buildings were razed to the ground and huge areas of land slipped hundreds of metres onto the towns and villages below 

Efforts have been made more urgent by the fact that Japan is expecting heavy rainfall tonight which will make the search even more challenging. 

The epicentre of the quake was near the city of Kumamoto on the southern island of Kyushu and measured at a shallow depth of 10 kms (6 miles), the USGS said.

Television footage of the area showed fires, power outages, collapsed bridges and gaping holes in the earth.

Residents near a dam were told to leave because of fears it might crumble, broadcaster NHK said, and the 400-year-old Kumamoto Castle  - which survived a century of wart - in the centre of the city was badly damaged.

Nearly 200,000 homes were without electricity and 410,000 are without water after supply systems were damaged, Japanese media reported.

TV footage showed people huddled in blankets, quietly, shoulder to shoulder, on floors of evacuation centers.

One massive landslide tore open a mountainside in Minamiaso village in Kunamato Prefecture all the way from the top to a highway below.

Another gnawed at a highway, collapsing a house that fell down a ravine and smashed at the bottom.

In another part of the village, houses were left hanging precariously at the edge of a huge hole cut open in the earth.

Shocking drone footage shows the extent of the damage, with buildings razed to rubble, roofs of houses collaped and the streets strewn with debris. 

Factories producing auto parts and tech components for companies including Sony Corp and Honda Motor Co halted production as they assessed the damage.

http://strangesounds.org/2016/04/huge-crack-dorset-jurassic-coast-p...

A huge crack running 100m (328ft) opened up on a section of Dorset’s Jurassic Coast on  April 13, 2016.

It appeared between Bowleaze Cove and Redcliff Point at Preston, near Weymouth.

The massive crack splits the land in two on the famous Jurassic Coast in Dorset.

The resulting crevasse measures about 250 yards long, up to 3ft wide and 4ft deep on April 12, 2016.

Thousands of tonnes of earth have given way and will continue to slip away, changing the landscape of the renowned coastline.

22 Pupils Injured after Landslide Hits School (4/21/16)

Twenty-two pupils were injured Thursday after landslide hit a primary school in south China's Rong'an County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said.

The landslide which occurred in Liuliao Village of Fushi Township at noon was triggered by persistent rain. The landslide caused the collapse of the walls of the school's classrooms, said Jiang Yu, deputy head of the county.

...Wei Lan, director of the land and resources bureau of the county, said a total of 1,600 cubic meters of rocks on the hill at the back of the school collapsed and rolled down to hit the school.

http://english.cri.cn/12394/2016/04/21/3561s925058.htm

Hundreds of tons of soil, rocks and debris crash down on to the Bournemouth (UK) seafront demolishing the public toilets 

A huge landslip causing hundreds of tons of soil, rocks and debris to crash down on to the seafront of Bournemouth below - demolishing a block of public toilets and damaging the cliff railway - is being investigated by experts.

Further landslips are now feared after the large section of the 100ft tall cliffs collapsed between Bournemouth pier and Boscombe pier on Saturday night.

It is believed a combination of recent heavy rain and a sudden drop in the temperature overnight could have triggered the cliff fall, which was discovered at 5am on Sunday.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3556594/Hundreds-tons-soil-...

http://www.dailysabah.com/asia/2016/05/09/at-least-35-dead-in-lands...

At least 35 dead in landslide at sothern China hydropower project site

The death toll in Monday's landslide at the site of a hydropower project in China's southeastern Fujian province has risen to 35 people state media said on Tuesday.

State news agency Xinhua cited sources in mountainous Taining County as saying Tuesday that one other person remained missing, despite earlier reports putting the death toll at 34 with four others unaccounted for since the disaster early Sunday .

"We were asleep when the mountains began to jolt very strongly and before we knew it, sand and mud were flowing into our room," survivor Deng Chunwu told the official Xinhua News Agency. It said he and three other workers survived by huddling underneath a supporting pole.

Their room was shifted a distance of 10 meters (30 feet) by the flowing mud, Deng said.

A number of others were being treated in hospital for bone fractures and other injures, Xinhua and state broadcaster CCTV said.

More than 600 rescuers, including firefighters and police, were searching for the missing and attempting to clear sections of roads leading to the site that had been made impassable by mudslides and flooding, hindering efforts to get heavy machinery through.

The project in mountainous Taining county in Fujian province is an extension of the Chitan hydropower station, an affiliate of state-owned Huadian Fuxin Energy Ltd., and was expected to begin operations in August 2017, Xinhua reported.

An official at the county department, who gave only his surname, Wei, said by phone that the cause of the landslide was still unclear, but that the area had seen rainfall in the past few days............

http://strangesounds.org/2016/05/catastrophic-landslide-video-kyrgy...

This is genuinely astounding, without doubt the most amazing of the year so far.

The description of the video says:

Two landslides occurred on April 27, 2016 at the Uch-Chat Pasture located near the village of Almaluu-Bulak in Jalal-Abad region. The first landslide of at least 100 thousand cubic meters came down at about 5.40 pm local time, and destroyed a summer house built on the pasture.

The second much larger landslide – 1 million 600 thousand cubic meters – came down at about 6.00 pm killing a 14-year-old boy who was grazing the livestock in the area.

It is unknown if the video shows the first or second landslide but according to its size and the existing landslide deposit I guess it is the second one.

The next two videos show the aftermath of the landslide. The first of these two videos has a decent shot of the provides an overview of the landslide:

The second video shows residents and helping crews trying to make the best out of the situation.

The landslide appears to be dry as almost no dust has been generated. And the ground really behaves like a fluid. The wave form evident in the video is remarkably reminiscent of a tsunami making landfall.

The cause of the landslide is of course undetermined. But I think it is related to heavy rains and water oversaturated soil.

Just like an Earth tsunami devouring everything on its path!

https://www.sott.net/article/318049-South-Ethiopian-landslides-kill...

 

At least 41 people have been killed in landslides in the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region, head of the local police department said. 

The landslide have been caused by heavy rains, according to police. 

"Rescue efforts are underway in collaboration with security workers to save people missing in the landslide," Alemayehu Mamo told the local Fana Broadcasting Corporate on Tuesday. 

Mamo noted that the rescue operation had been complicated by flooded roads. A total of 28 bodies have been recovered so far, according to the police officer. 

The African country has been struggling with the worst El Nino on record, an anomaly characterized by high temperatures of surface sea water that causes a wide range of natural disasters from floods to droughts. 

15 dead after landslide sweeps Uganda village (5/11/16)

At least 15 people have been confirmed dead and scores still missing following a landslide triggered by heavy downpours in western Uganda's Bundibugyo District Tuesday morning.

Bridges were washed away and some 200 homes destroyed in heavy rains that have cut off access to some areas. Rescue operations are on-going.

...The news comes a day after authorities announced that at least 49 people had been killed at the weekend in neighbouring Rwanda after landslides caused by heavy rains.

Landslides are not unusual in Rwanda but this year’s rainy season has been particularly deadly with at least 67 people killed from January to April.

http://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016/05/11/15-dead-after-landslide-s...

37 people reported killed in Sri Lanka landslides 

Published: May 19 2016, https://citizentv.co.ke/news/37-people-reported-killed-in-sri-lanka...

Rescue workers in Sri Lanka are digging through heavy piles of mud and debris in an effort to find victims after torrential rains triggered  flooding that sent massive landslides crashing down on homes in three villages, leaving at least 37 people dead.  Dozens of people are reported missing and feared buried alive.

President Maithripala Sirisena Wednesday toured an area devastated by the severe weather and said, “The loss is devastating” in a message posted on Twitter.  Sri Lanka’s meteorological department said the heavy rains were caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal but were expected to subside.

Also Read: Al Shabaab defector killed in Kwale

The Sri Lankan Red Cross said in a statement posted online that two teams were dispatched early in the day alongside government authorities and had since rescued 180 people, despite power outages in the villages of Siripura, Pallebage and Elagipitya in the Aranayake area, located in Kegalle district.

The president ordered troops to help evacuate people living in flood-hit areas or on slopes. The country’s navy and air force were called to help with relief operations with approximately 266 troops deployed in Kegalle, the worst-affected district.

Police said many residents fled farming areas before the landslides hit.  Reports say more than 350,000 people have been affected by the weather-related disaster with 223,000 people taking shelter in state-run welfare centers.

The rains have caused flooding in cities including the capital, Colombo.  Schools nationwide were closed Wednesday due to the bad weather.

Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Center reported that over the past few days, 11 people have been killed in electrocutions and smaller landslides.

Massive Cliff Collapse in Southern England (May 22)

Around ten metres of the East Sussex cliff collapsed into the sea over the weekend in the biggest landslide in decades.

Thousands of tons of chalk plummeted onto the beach and sea during the collapse.

National park experts are now warning of a risk of further collapses.

Mr Novis took a video on a canoe showing the results of the fall near Cuckmere Haven where he described the cliffs as "fragile".

He said: “It is the biggest I have ever seen and I have lived on the coast for more than 50 years.

“I think a cliff fall on this scale is very rare but it certainly could happen again.

“I’ve also recently seen evidence of other smaller falls along the coast and it is clear the cliff edge is very fragile at the moment.

Source

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/673347/Landslide-British-beauty-sp...