Mass Wasting Events (That's Landslides)

Mass Wasting What?

I, too, was confused when I read that for the first time. Allow me to clarify that for you; while you may not know what exactly the term "mass wasting event" means, you're probably more than familiar with its other general term, landslides. Of course, there's also mudslides, rockfalls, and other things of similar nature, all of which fall under the category of being a mass wasting event. The term itself is used to describe any downward movent of earth materials, with the specification that it is under the direct influence of gravity. Interestingly, these events (which from this point will be referred to as MWEs) do not need to be triggered by such as an earthquake, it only needs gravity to occur.

 

Peru is familiar with mass wasting events, with the 1970 earthquake being especially notable. The 45-second earthquake triggered massive landslides, the latter causing the majority of damages. In the end, approximately 70,000 people died in the event, with 150,000 more being injured.

Science Photo Library View of destroyed adobe houses in Huaraz

Peru has even had MWEs as recent as 2023, with cyclone Yaku causing landslides that affected over 500,000 people, with the death toll being significantly lower at 71. The landslides caused the Peruvian government to trigger its highest level of national emergency.

Peru – Heavy Rain Triggers Massive Landslide in La Libertad – FloodList

Comments

  1. Ana GGOctober 14, 2024 at 8:08 AM

    Interesting read- what specific mitigation measures you'd suggest?

    ReplyDelete

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