Satellite images are revealing the scale of the destruction in Sri Lanka caused by landslides triggered by Cyclone Ditwah at the end of November 2025. At the end of November 2025, a “weak” tropical cyclone, subsequently named Cyclone Ditwah, formed just offshore from Sri Lanka. Over the following day the storm tracked around the south […]
Hazards & Disasters
Posted inOpinions
When Should a Tsunami Not Be Called a Tsunami?
It’s time to redefine the term so it more clearly conveys meaningful risks to coastal communities and prompts them to act when needed.
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Full Planet imagery of the 4 November 2025 landslide at Mae Moh Mine in Thailand
Over the weekend, Planet captured near-perfect images of the Mae Moh Mine landslide in Thailand. Last week, I posted a set of Planet satellite images that captured most of the 4 November 2025 landslide at Mae Moh Mine in Thailand. However, there was considerable cloud in the imagery, which prevented a full understanding of the […]
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Planet imagery of the 4 November 2025 landslide at Mae Moh Mine in Thailand
Planet imagery shows the massive coal waste landslide at Mae Moh Mine. The failure was about 4.8 km long and 1.4 km wide As I noted in an earlier post on this blog, at about 4 am on 4 November 2025, a very large landslide occurred in a coal waste pile at the Mae Moh […]
Posted inNews
New Tool Maps the Overlap of Heat and Health in California
CalHeatScore creates heat wave warnings for every zip code in California, using temperature data, socioeconomic indicators, and the history of emergency room visits, to predict heat-related health risk.
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Satellite imagery of the 11 November 2025 landslide at Hongqi Bridge in China
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. Satellite company Blacksky has released a high resolution satellite image, captured on 12 November 2025, showing the aftermath of the 11 November 2025 landslide at Hongqi Bridge in China. The image was […]
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
The 11 November 2025 landslide at Hongqi Bridge in China
A large landslide has destroyed a 662 m long highway viaduct in China. Over the last two days there has been considerable media coverage of a large, highly destructive rockslide that occurred at Hongqi Bridge in Sichuan Province, China. There is a very interesting set of images of the bridge during construction on the Highest […]
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Global fatal landslides in August 2025
In August 2025, I recorded 104 fatal landslides leading to 2,365 fatalities, a record total number of landslides for August. Loyal readers will know that each year, August is one of the two peak months for fatal landslides. In 2025, I recorded 104 fatal landslides leading to 2,365 fatalities (but please see below as I […]
Posted inThe Landslide Blog
Pikillaqta in Cusco: the role of an earthquake-induced debris flow in about 900 AD
The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides. According to Wikipedia, Pikillaqta is a large archaeological site located 20 km to the east of Cusco in Peru. Inhabited by the Wari people, it was abandoned at about 900 AD for […]
Posted inNews
Safety Device Supplies Life-Saving Air in an Avalanche
An Alpine medical team buried 24 volunteers in a mountain pass. Their study confirmed the efficacy of the Safeback SBX, which uses snow’s natural porosity to supply air to buried avalanche victims.