landslide

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Failures

Landslide / Mudslide in Logan Utah

July 14, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Landslide / Mudslide in Logan Utah

A landslide in Logan Utah caused a portion of a canal to fail, causing a second mudslide. Three people, a mother and two children, were believed to be buried when the mud and debris hit their home. Rescue efforts were halted fairly quickly because of concern regarding the stability of the hillside. So far I have not read any reports that the bodies have been recovered. Map, Videos and more after the break. (Photo by Mike Terry, Deseret News, hat tip to Landslides Under a Microscope Blog)

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Ocean Shore Railroad Tracks at the Devil's Slide in the early 1900s.
Project Related

Devil’s Slide Tunnel Update and First Attempts to Tame the Landslide

July 1, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Devil’s Slide Tunnel Update and First Attempts to Tame the Landslide

Ocean Shore Railroad Tracks at the Devil's Slide in the early 1900s. The Devil’s Slide Tunnel project is on schedule and on budget according to a news story at ABC7News.com from earlier in June. The video (shown after the break) has a few nice shots showing rock bolting, soil nailing at the portals, and the geologic mapping and laser scanning that happens at the tunnel face.

I also came across a very neat article about how the Ocean Shore Railroad Company was the first to try to cut into the slope along what is now PCH 1 at the Devil’s Slide back in the early 1900s. They were trying to connect the then rural farming community of Half-Moon Bay with San Francisco. The railroad fought the reoccurring landslide and serious rockfalls. Ocean Shore Railroad went bankrupt in 1922 and pulled up its rails, making room for the current highway. (Photo at left from halfmoonbaymemories.com)

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Devil's slide repair of PCH 1 using
Geologic Hazards

Devil’s Slide Repair and Tunnel Bypass Presentation

May 28, 2009 rockman 1

Devil's slide repair of PCH 1 using [Updated Thursday May 29, 2009 – 1:00 PM PDT] Added a photo of the AIS Kaiser S2 excavator (spider excavator), and added photos of the Devil’s Slide debris dump where they have put the landslide material removed and the material from the tunnel excavation. [/Update]

Grant Wilcox, Geology Branch Chief with CALTRANS Office of Geotechnical Design West gave a presentation on the Devil’s Slide repair along PCH Highway 1 at the Southwest Geotechnical Engineer’s Conference on May 12 in Phoenix. I’ve posted about the project here before. When I saw Mr. Wilcox, I knew he looked familiar but I couldn’t figure out why. At the beginning of his presentation he made light of his being on You-Tube…then it clicked! He gave a nice overview of the history of the failures, the geology, and the tunnel project. What follows are a few quick tidbits from his talk based on my notes. (Photo via Caltrans site).

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Anchored landslide in Japan
Geologic Hazards

Landslide Mitigation Examples in Japan

May 6, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Landslide Mitigation Examples in Japan

A couple of weeks ago the Landslides Under a Microscope blog had two nice posts about Landslide Mitigation examples in Japan. The author references the book “Landslides in Japan” (1996), but I’m not sure if […]

SR 87 landslide in Arizona
Geologic Hazards

SR 87 Landslide Presentation at Roads and Streets Conference

April 17, 2009 rockman Comments Off on SR 87 Landslide Presentation at Roads and Streets Conference

SR 87 landslide in Arizona Last week was the annual American Council of Engineering Companies of Arizona Roads and Streets Conference in my home town of Tucson, Arizona.  Its a transportation themed conference as you might guess, but there are usually a few geotechnical-type presentations. This year, there was an excellent presentation on the SR 87 Landslide that occurred about 1-year ago on the highway between Phoenix and Payson.  The presentation was given by Keith Dhalen, PE with AECOM , Wayne Harrison, RG also with AECOM and Scott Neely, PE with Terracon . Read on for my recap of the presentation. (Photo by ADOT via AZGS)

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USGS Documentary Riding the Storm - Landslide Danger in the San Francisco Bay Area
Geologic Hazards

USGS Landslide Documentary Video

March 17, 2009 rockman Comments Off on USGS Landslide Documentary Video

USGS Documentary Riding the Storm - Landslide Danger in the San Francisco Bay Area The USGS has a documentary on landslide video on landslide danger in the San Francisco Bay area entitled “Riding the Storm”. I think the target audience is more general than geologist or engineer, but it is still interesting. The bullet points from the USGS site:

  • A catastrophic 1982 rainstorm triggered 18,000 landslides in the Bay Area, claiming 25 lives and causing $66 million in property damage
  • The combination of steep slopes, weak rocks, and intense winter storms make Bay Area uplands an ideal setting for landslides
  • Landslides include both swift, potentially deadly debris flows and slower, but destructive deepseated slides
  • Learn what USGS scientists have discovered about landslide dynamics and which slopes are most susceptible to sliding
  • Hear the devastating stories of Bay Area residents affected by landslides and learn to recognize the danger signs

Click through to view the trailer and for links to download the full video. (Image credit: USGS)

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Landslide damage in north Salt Lake City area
Geologic Hazards

Slow Moving Landslide in North Salt Lake City Area

January 21, 2009 rockman Comments Off on Slow Moving Landslide in North Salt Lake City Area

Landslide damage in north Salt Lake City areaResidents of a neighborhood on the north side of Salt Lake City, Utah received some bad news recently from a state geologist. The slow moving landslide that has been moving on the order of several inches per year has begun moving at a faster rate. They predict movement on the order of feet per year. Several houses have already been condemned and torn down with more likely. Click through for some news footage showing the problem area and some of the damage to house foundations, sidewalks, pipes and other reactions from unfortunate residents. (Photo by KSL, NBC Salt Lake City affiliate)

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