According to JapanToday, the death toll from the Typhoon Morakot caused mudslides and related damage could be as high as 600 after the typhoon dumped over 2-meters of rain (79-inches!) on the island nation. The mudslide that virtually destroyed the entire village of Hsiao-lin (guardian.co.uk) or Shiaolin (Japan Today) could have as many as 400-500 of those casualties. Most rescue efforts have been halted, but many people are still missing and possibly buried under mudslide and landslide debris as the Taiwanese President is coming under fire for his handling of disaster. (AP Photo via Guardian.co.uk)
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Allegations: Oregon Not Forthcoming With Landslide Hazard Information
Folks in Oregon are angry about a recent landslide and debris flow that closed Highway 30 and destroyed property in the town of Woodson. (Here is a powerpoint presentation by Bill Burns of the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries showing how the event happened). Some rather stinging allegations are being made that politicians withdrew a landslide hazard map from general use in 2002 for political reasons. That map or another one had characterized the area effected by the December 2007 debris flow as a "very high" or "extreme" risk of landslides. A very interesting article.
GeoGirl – Fighting Geohazards Since 2016!
Devil’s Slide Tunnel Construction Kicks Off
On September 17, CALTRANS and Kiewit Pacific held a "tunnel excavation celebration" to kick off the start of tunnel construction on The Devil’s Slide Tunnels project on California State Route 1 (the Pacific Coast Highway) in San Mateo County between the town of Montara to the south and the city of Pacifica to the north. The project involves the creation of a separated two-lane road, one lane in each direction. This road will pass through twin tunnels, over twin bridges and connect with an existing non-separated two-lane road at each end. The new road will be approximately 6,500 feet long, made up of the roughly 4,000-foot twin tunnels, the 1,500-foot north approach road (which includes the 1000-foot parallel bridges), and the 1,000-foot south approach road. Upon completion, the new road will bypass geologically unstable portions of existing Route 1, sections of roadway subject to lengthy closures, high maintenance costs over the years, and risk of permanent failure. Thanks Geology.com for the heads up. [Read on for more background, photos, maps, and movies!] (Images by CALTRANS)