Landslides

In the Oxford dictionary the definition of landslides is a mass of earth or rock that slides down a mountain or cliff.

Gravity causes the landslide movement. Factors triggering these movements are heavy rainfall, earthquakes, poor constructions practices, erosion, and volcanoes eruptions, etc.  There are two types of landslides; fast and slow.

Mudslides, mudflows, lahars are examples of fast-moving landscapes. Usually caused by heavy rains after volcanic eruption. After volcanic eruption the raise in chemicals caused the sky cloudy and forms the humid atmosphere, therefore resulting in rainfall. During rain, the dust and chemicals raised in the atmosphere are cooled down and causing lahars, mudflows. 

The other form of landslides is slow, causes erosion over a long period of time. Waterfalls erode lands by the continuous flow of water. 

Slow moving landslides don’t cause much affect to human lives and properties. On the other side, fast moving landslides cause a lot of effect to human live as this destruction is caused “suddenly”.  For example, water supplies, fisheries, sewage disposal system, forests dam, and roadways can be affected for a long period of time.

The development of countries after landslides depends on the economic structure of the country – developed or under developed or developing. The negative economic effects of landslides include loss of property, disruption of transportations, roads, medical costs for the injuries, rebuilding infrastructure such as electricity and water supply.

Areas that are prone to landslides include areas where landslides have occurred before; relatively flat areas changed by sudden change in slope. Other most common areas prone to landslides are based on drainage channels and hillsides areas where leach-field infected systems are used.

Case Study on fast-landslide: In July 2010, a heavy rain in Myanmar (Bangladesh) has caused major landslides and floods. This has forced around 10,000 people to move from their homes, 100 of them have died. This disaster has affected the roads and swept away the bridges and houses built on slopes were washed away due to landslides. Many houses and schools were destroyed, shortage in food supply and no electricity supply.