Quang Nam Province: A video that shows why the aftermath of a landslide can be very dangerous

Further heavy rainfall is triggering landslides in Vietnam.  Unfortunately Typhoon Vamco is likely to make landfall over the weekend, bringing further rainfall into areas that are already saturated.  Substantial problems are likely.

In the meantime, the ongoing landslides, triggered in initially by the succession of recent typhoons, are having a major impact.  This is clearly illustrated by a frightening video of a small but nonetheless deadly landslide from Quang Nam Province, which has been posted to Youtube:-

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The video shows a group crossing the site of a recent landslide.  Fortunately someone shouts a warning and the group seeks to escape the landslide, as this still shows:

Quang Nam Province landslide: a still from a video posted to Youtube by Vietnam News

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Apparently two people were caught in the landslide in Quang Nam Province – I suspect that this will have been the individuals on the far side of the failure when it initiated.  There is some variation in the reports of the consequences, but it seems likely that one person was killed and another suffered a broken leg.

The video illustrates two key points.  The first is that failures often repeatedly occur at the same site, so moving into the danger zone is exceptionally perilous.  This is a particular issue for those undertaking rescues.  The second is that even small failures can be exceptionally violent, especially when static liquefaction is invoked.

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Quickslide 1: Gutemala requests international assistance

As Guatemala tries to recover from the recent floods and landslides, it is formally requesting assistance from the international community.  Given the current chaos at the top of many international governments, I wonder whether it will receive the help it needs.

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Quickslide 2: a large incipient landslide in Dorset

ITV reports that a large crack has opened up on the coastal path near to West Bay in Dorset.  This is undoubtedly the development of a new failure on a section of coast in which landslides dominate the geomorphology.