More than 50,000 people were killed by landslides between 2004 and 2016 all over the world, according to a new study by researchers from Sheffield University. For the research, the team compiled data on over 4800 fatal landslides during a 13-year long period. They also helped reveal, for the first time, that landslides resulting from human activity have increased over time. The research was published recently in the European Geosciences Union’s journal Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences.
The research team found that more than 700 fatal landslides between 2004 and 2016 had a human fingerprint. Most of these landslides were caused by construction works, legal and illegal mining and also by the unregulated cutting of hills (carving out land on a slope).
“We were aware that humans are placing increasing pressure on their local environment, but it was surprising to find clear trends within the database that fatal landslides triggered by construction, illegal hillcutting and illegal mining were increasing globally during the period of 2004 and 2016,” said Melanie Froude, a postdoctoral researcher at Sheffield’s Department of Geography and also the lead author of the study.
Though the trend has affected almost every country, but Asia has been hit most severely. All the countries in the top 10 for fatal landslide that were triggered by human activity are located in Asia. On top is India, whcih accounts for 20% of all these events. Human-triggered fatal landslides are also increasing at the highest rate in India, followed by Pakistan, Myanmar and the Philippines.
The researchers identified about 4800 fatal landslides, barring those that were triggered by earthquakes which took place between 2004 and 2016 and led to nearly 56,000 deaths. The most tragic and devastating event was the Kedarnath landslide in June 2013 in India, which resulted in over 5000 deaths.
Petley collected data on fatal landslides since the year 2004 from several online English-language media reports. To make sure that the news were accurate, Petley and Froude reviewed all the landslide accounts and checked each report with the help of government and aid agency articles, academic studies and personal communication. They added details about the location, impacts and cause to the Global Fatal Landslide Database.
“Collecting these reports and organising them into a database shows us where landslides are frequently harming people, what causes these landslides and whether there are patterns in fatal landslide occurrence over time. The database provides us with an overview of the impact of landslides on society,” said Petley.