Landslides are dangerous rapids, usually referred to as debris flows by geologists and first responders. They were particularly deadly in parts of California, where landscape, climate, weather and geology can combine to make them more possible.
California has been working to add tools to protect against landslides, including identifying hotspots, creating basins, and placing nets to catch fallen debris before hitting the home.
Why is California prone to landslides?
According to geologists, California has relatively young mountains from a geological perspective.
Serious droughts can also be a problem. Experts say that when heavy rain falls into very dry and hard soil, it can carry the soil and debris and quickly pick up energy downhill.
And wildfires – an increasing problem throughout the West – can leave hillsides with little or no vegetation in order to keep the soil in place.
The LA County Fire Department rushed to the Catch Basin Thursday on the Cheney Trail above Loma Atta Drive to help with rescue after security guards and his vehicle got caught in the flood. Tracey Leong is reporting NBC4 News on February 13, 2025 at 11pm.
What are the most vulnerable areas?
The most at-risk areas are located on or near the mid-sided hillside that has been burned in recent years, with little or no vegetation remaining to keep the soil in place.
According to the California Department of Conservation, burning vegetation and soil on slopes more than doubled the rate of water runoff, and has been a serious event over the years.
On January 9, 2018, heavy rain fell in the mountains above Montecito on the coast of Santa Barbara County from weeks of wildfire burns.
In 1934, a storm in the Southern California mountains unleashed a very intense runoff, killing 30 people and destroying more than 480 homes.
And on Christmas Day 2003, the burnt mountain rain unleashed the stream of debris that killed 16 people gathered at the canyon church facility.
What can we do to protect our community?
One of the best ways to manage landslides is to use a basin of wreckage. A hole carved from the landscape to capture material flowing through the US Geological Survey states that it could reach speeds above 35 mph (56 kph).
According to Los Angeles County Public Works, it is often located at the mouth of a canyon, where the basin collects debris, allowing water to continue downstream. This prevents obstruction of the stormwater drainage system, but requires the removal of sediment from the basin. This can take days or months depending on the size.
However, basins that may require a lot of land can disrupt natural ecosystems and lead to beaches that need to be replenished by gathering sediments flowing from the canyon. They also cost money – Santa Barbara County has spent $20 million on new basins since 2018 – and sometimes they have to be empty. Or you could be overwhelmed by new landslides and landslides.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the debris basin in the Montecito community was small in size, not fully empty, and did not contribute to the landslide. The community gathered millions to address the issue and hired engineering companies to map canyons and install debris nets.
The California Department of Conservation operates a geology and landslide mapping team seeking to identify hotspots, and is continuously updating the map to allow local communities to make decisions, including potential evacuations. Masu.
Experts use a variety of tools to assess the potential for landslides in a particular area, such as terrain maps and riders, and infiltrate the foliage by penetrating pulsed light from the laser to see the ground. That’s what it is. They can then monitor early warnings, such as photos from the air, photos from satellites, data from GPS monitoring stations, tilt meters, or other on-site instrumentation, which change over time. .
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