Failure mechanism and kinematics of the deadly June 24th 2017 Xinmo landslide, Maoxian, Sichuan, China

Diexi earthquake; Failure mechanism; Landslide; Rock avalanche; UAV and InSAR; Aerial photography; Earthquakes; Geophysics; Gravitation; Hazards; Kinematics; Landslides; Remote sensing; Rocks; Rural areas; Seismology; Synthetic aperture radar; Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV); Field investigation; Geological fields; Ground-based synthetic aperture radars; Hazard Assessment; Satellite remote sensing; Triggering mechanism; Failure (mechanical); China; Maoxian; Sichuan

Abstract :

[en] At 5:38 am on the 24th June, 2017, a catastrophic rock avalanche destroyed the whole village of Xinmo, in Maoxian County, Sichuan Province, China. About 4.3 million m3 of rock detached from the crest of the mountain, gained momentum along a steep hillslope, entrained a large amount of pre-existing deposits, and hit the village at a velocity of 250 km/h. The impact produced a seismic shaking of ML = 2.3 magnitude. The sliding mass dammed the Songping gully with an accumulation body of 13 million m3. The avalanche buried 64 houses; 10 people were killed and 73 were reported missing. The event raised great concerns both in China and worldwide. Extensive field investigation, satellite remote sensing, UAV aerial photography, and seismic analysis allowed to identify the main kinematic features, the dynamic process, and the triggering mechanism of the event. With the aid of ground-based synthetic aperture radar monitoring, the hazard deriving from potential further instabilities in the source area has been assessed. The preliminary results suggest that the landslide was triggered by the failure of a rock mass, which had been already weakened by the Ms 7.5 Diexi earthquake in 1933. Several major earthquakes since then, and the long-term effect of gravity and rainfall, contributed to the mass failure. The high elevation, slope angle, and vegetation cover in the source area hinder geological field investigation and make hazard assessment difficult. Nonetheless, monitoring and prevention of similar collapses in mountainous areas must be carried out to protect human lives and infrastructures. To this aim, the integrated use of modern high-precision observation technologies is strongly encouraged. © 2017, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany.

Disciplines :

Earth sciences & physical geography

Author, co-author :

Fan, X.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Xu, Q.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Scaringi, G.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Dai, L.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Li, W.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Dong, X.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Zhu, X.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Pei, X.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Dai, K.; The State Key Laboratory of Geohazards Prevention and Geoenvironment Protection (SKLGP), Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan 610059, China

Havenith, Hans-Balder ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de géologie > Géologie de l'environnement

Language :

English

Title :

Failure mechanism and kinematics of the deadly June 24th 2017 Xinmo landslide, Maoxian, Sichuan, China

Publication date :

2017

Journal title :

Landslides

ISSN :

1612-510X

eISSN :

1612-5118

Publisher :

Springer Verlag

Volume :

Issue :

Pages :

2129-2146

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Funders :

Newcastle University
MLR - Ministry of Land and Resources of the People's Republic of China
CDUT - Chengdu University of Technology
CGS - China Geological Survey
WHU - Wuhan University
AXA - AXA Research Fund

Funding text :

This research is financially supported by National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of China (Grant No. 41225011), the Funds for Creative Research Groups of China (Grant No. 41521002), National Science Fund for Outstanding Young Scholars of China (Grant No. 41622206), the AXA Fund.

Available on ORBi :

since 31 July 2020

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