Joel Smith (Former Employee)
Science and Products
Sitka, AK
On August 18, 2015, heavy rainfall triggered around 60 landslides in and around the city of Sitka, AK. The landslides moved downslope rapidly; several were damaging and one of these demolished a home on South Kramer Avenue killing three people.
Toro Negro, Puerto Rico
The USGS has installed instruments in a steep hillside northwest of the municipality of Villalba in the Toro Negro State Forest.
Utuado, Puerto Rico
The USGS has installed instruments in a steep hillside east of the municipality of Utuado.
Millicoma Meander, Elliott State Forest, Oregon
The USGS and its cooperators have installed instruments in a steep, recently clear-cut basin in the Elliott State Forest.
Chalk Cliffs, Colorado
Chalk Cliffs, located 8 miles southwest of Buena Vista, CO, is one of the most active debris-flow areas in the state.
2009 Station Fire, Dunsmore Canyon, Glendale, California
In 2009, the Station Fire burned 160,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains. Vegetation has started to return, but it can take many years for a basin to fully recover from the effects of fire.
2009 Station Fire, Arroyo Seco, Pasadena, California
In 2009, the Station Fire burned 160,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains. Vegetation has started to return, but it can take many years for a basin to fully recover from the effects of fire.
Landslides Can Cause More Landslides
Release Date: MAY 15, 2018
The deadliest individual landslides in the U.S. recently were in places where there had previously been a landslide. Why do landslides happen in the same place instead of on nearby slopes that appear to be just as likely, if not more likely, to slide?