Slew of Landslides Unmask Hidden Geological Hazards

Abstract

On 7 August, heavy rains in the mountains north of Zhouqu, in western China's Gansu Province, unleashed a torrent of mud, boulders, and rubble, most of which, researchers believe, had been deposited in two gullies north of town by landslides and rockfalls after a big earthquake in 1879. The findings suggested that debris flows could strike more than 100 years after a major quake.