Killer Landslides

On the morning of 22 March 2014, an ominous rumble startled the residents of the community of Oso, Washington. It was the terrifying sound of what would become the United States' deadliest landslide in decades. In a little over two minutes, a pile of debris up to 75-feet deep slammed into the neighbourhood of nearly 50 homes. In this documentary, geologists trace the geological history of Oso to explain why it was so unstable, yet all around the world scientists have reason to fear that the worst is yet to come. Globally, landslides and other ground failures take a tremendous human and economic toll, and with climate change bringing a sharp rise in precipitation, the threat of bigger, more frequent landslides is growing. The programme surveys landslide danger zones, explains how and why landslides happen, and also how radar monitoring technologies could help issue life-saving warnings. Ⓢ