Real-Time Landslide Warning during Heavy Rainfall

A real-time system for issuing warnings of landslides during major storms is being developed for the San Francisco Bay region, California. The system is based on empirical and theoretical relations between rainfall and landslide initiation, geologic determination of areas susceptible to landslides,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1987-11, Vol.238 (4829), p.921-925
Main Authors: Keefer, David K., Wilson, Raymond C., Mark, Robert K., Brabb, Earl E., Brown, William M., Ellen, Stephen D., Harp, Edwin L., Wieczorek, Gerald F., Alger, Christopher S., Zatkin, Robert S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
California
Civil defense
Disasters
Floods
Geology
Geophysical prediction
Land
Landslides
Precipitation
Rain
Rain intensity
Storm damage
Storms
Warning systems
Warnings
Weather
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Summary:A real-time system for issuing warnings of landslides during major storms is being developed for the San Francisco Bay region, California. The system is based on empirical and theoretical relations between rainfall and landslide initiation, geologic determination of areas susceptible to landslides, real-time monitoring of a regional network of telemetering rain gages, and National Weather Service precipitation forecasts. This system was used to issue warnings during the storms of 12 to 21 February 1986, which produced 800 millimeters of rainfall in the region. Although analysis after the storms suggests that modifications and additional developments are needed, the system successfully predicted the times of major landslide events. It could be used as a prototype for systems in other landslide-prone regions.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.238.4829.921