2 November 2015

A roundup of new landslide videos

Posted by Dave Petley

landslide videos

Via the Daily Mail

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New landslide videos

In the last couple of weeks some new landslide videos have appeared:

A huge rockslide in Taxila, Pakistan

This one is pretty spectacular, although I have very little information about it:

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I would be interested in more information.  I don’t think I’ve seen it before, but am unsure.  It is truly spectacular!

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A rockslide in Mexico

This one was covered quite extensively in the media:

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The Daily Mail reported it as follows:

At least 15 cars were damaged as six thousand cubic metres of earth crashed onto the road below.  Amazingly, the landslide did not bring down two tower blocks and a private house built precariously near the cliff edge as the ground collapsed underneath them.   But shocked drivers and pedestrians below meanwhile tried to flee the debris, and the huge dust cloud that followed.  The dramatic incident happened in Santa Fe, one of the major business districts of Mexico City, located in the west part of the Mexican capital city.   Parts of the video were taken from the other side of the valley, on dashboard cameras and mobile phones, and they were all uploaded onto social media where they quickly went viral. Officials say people living in the apartment buildings were told there was a risk of landslide back in 2007, but ignored their warnings.  The authorities of Cuajimalpa, one of the 16 boroughs of Mexico City to which Santa Fe belongs, also said they had previously advised the inhabitants to abandon the buildings fearing they would fall if there was a landslide.

A rock topple in Switzerland

This pair of landslide videos showing a spectacular rock topple in Switzerland was also extensively covered:

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The Daily Mail reported this one too:

This is the incredible moment a huge piece of rock broke free from the side of a mountain and plummeted 1,000 feet in Switzerland.  The incredible footage was captured by a geologist who just happened to be filming when the rock fall occurred on a mountain in the Swiss Alps.  According to local reports the 2,000 cubic metres of solid rock that fell caused an avalanche on the mountain of Mel de la Niva, near Evolene.  Geologists studying the mountain had noted geological activity prior to the incident and the site had been under surveillance since 2013, reported Le Nouvelliste. Major movements were detected last week and the hamlet of Arbey and a road below the mountain had been evacuated and shut the day before.