Heavy rainfall caused a landslide, disrupting the movement of vehicles on the Mangaluru-Bengaluru National Highway near Bejai area of Mangaluru in Karnataka on Thursday. To clear the debris off the road, the fire and emergency services have intensified their efforts.
It’s not the first in the state, numbers of landslides are reported in monsoon season, that have been causing loss of property and human lives. Geographical Survey of India (GSI) estimated that economic losses due to landslides can reach between 1-2% of the gross national product in many developing countries. Considering the high rate of settlement of people in mountain slopes across the country, it is important to know why a landslide occurs and how can we be safe during the onset of landslides.
In layman term, a landslide is the movement of soil, rock and debris down a slope due to gravity. Heavy rainfall makes the rock and soil more unstable, increasing likelihood of landslides. The Geological Survey of India (GSI) assesses that nearly 12.6% of the land area of our country is prone to landslides. Himalayan regions are more susceptible to landslides. Western Ghat emerged another region prone to landslide. Climate change coupled with the heavy rains and steep western slopes.
What To Do When Landslides Occur
1. Keep Yourself Alert In Landslide Areas: The first and primary work to do in the landslide prone areas is to stay yourself alert. Landslides can occur quite suddenly so it’s important to be ready to take action at a moment’s notice.
2. To Be Updated With News: To be informed with news is the another call of action. It is more important to be updated about the weather, warnings about intense rainfall, which can trigger landslides.
3. Evacuate Immediately: The third step one should take during landslides is to evacuate immediately. When rain starts, it is safe to evacuate the area in one is living in an landslide-prone area.
4. Look For Shelter: After evacuation, seeking shelter is the next step. For the safe location, one should follow the evacuation routes and avoid roads.
5. Dial emergency contacts: Once get safe, to dial emergency numbers is one of the way to save life.
