21 May 2014

Zenica: a spectacular landslide video from Bosnia

Posted by Dave Petley

Zenica landslide

This video has appeared on youtube.  It shows the development of a landslide triggered by the exceptional rainfall that struck the Balkans over the last few days.  The landslide apparently occurred at Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This landslide will have been a tragedy for the owners of the houses, which are very unlikely to have been insured.  Initially most of the damage is focused on the lateral shears (the edge of the landslide), on which the group of houses are located.  In the 3 minutes of the video these are completely destroyed.  Note also the rate at which the rear scarp develops though.  The resulting motion tilts and then collapses the house in the lower part of the landslide.