Deadly mudslides

At least 400 people have been killed by the mudslide that swept through Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, on Monday morning. Another 600 are still missing, as rescue workers desperately hunt for survivors.

Freetown is an overcrowded city of more than a million, many living in makeshift settlements which are easily washed away in frequent heavy rains and floods. A key objective at the moment is to avoid the disaster being made worse by water-borne diseases such as cholera, typhoid and diarrhoea.

Probably the deadliest mudslide ever was the one that hit Venezuela in the dying days of the last millennium in December 1999. It effortlessly swept away the shanty towns precariously perched on ridges around the capital Caracas.

But smart apartment blocks also found themselves buried under the mud. Most estimates put the number killed at around 30,000, with 140,000 left homeless, and more than 20,000 homes destroyed. For the story, see A Disastrous History of the World.

See also my post of 21 February 2010.

Landslides - Africa, India, South America

Heavy rain has brought deadly landslides in Africa and India. At least 38 people have been killed in the Nilgiri Hills in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Continuing monsoon rains are hampering the rescue effort, and it’s feared the death toll may rise.

While in Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro province, four days of rain brought part of a mountain crashing down on the village of Goha, killing at least 20. Ironically, the area has been suffering from severe drought for the past two years.

The deadliest landslide in history was probably the one that devastated Venezuela’s coastal region in December 1999. Thirty-six inches of rain fell in just a few days, and flash floods and mudslides engulfed high rise buildings and effortlessly ripped away shanty towns perched precariously on ridges around the capital Caracas.

More than 20,000 homes were destroyed, and an estimated 140,000 people made homeless. The death toll has been estimated at anything up to 30,000. For more, see A Disastrous History of the World. (see also my blog of April 17)

Landslides

Sixteen people – including nine children - have been killed by a landslide in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan. It struck a village in the south of the country after heavy rains, though overgrazing of mountain slopes is also thought to have contributed to the disaster.

Probably the deadliest landslide in history was the one that struck Venezuela’s coastal areas in December 1999. Torrential rain caused flash floods and mudslides, and the shanty towns that clung to the steep escarpments around the capital Caracas were simply washed away. More than 20,000 homes were destroyed, and 140,000 people made homeless, as President Chavez used his own residence to house children who had lost their parents. The death toll was estimated at about 30,000.

Another dreadful landslide struck the Khait area of another Central Asian country, Tajikistan in 1949. Details are sparse, but there are claims that 33 villages were destroyed and up to 28,000 people killed.