Landslides are quite common in the mountains and hilly areas due to constant weathering of rocks and erosion. Human activities like the felling of trees can speed up the process of landslides while natural activities like heavy rain and earthquakes can have the same effect. Here is a video that shows a guy on a scooter narrowly escaping a landslide on the road.
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The video shows that person on the scooter riding on the road and getting captured in the CCTV that was facing the road. The video shows the movement of the rocks and the trees and the person on the two-wheeler enter the frame. Since he was on a high speed, he could not stop well in time and the landslide almost caught him. The landslides happen very quickly, within a fraction of a second. The unsuspecting person on the scooter almost got buried under the landslide.
Even though it is comparatively a small landslide, the road completely gets destroyed and the small plants on the roadside get uprooted in a matter of seconds. Interestingly, the area looks affected by previous landslides and a small portion of the hill can be seen exposed.
Landslides are quite common in the young mountains like the Himalaya where the movement of rocks can cause them. However, landslides can occur anywhere. The reason for this landslide can be the felling of trees, which causes loose soil that can get washed away very easily due to rain. The roots of trees and plants bind the soil together and ensure that the landslides do not happen. When it rains, the water simply flows down and the plantation slows down the flow that lowers the erosion and stops landslides from happening. However, without any trees and plants to hold the soil together, the water flows down freely and can cause landslides like the one we saw in this video.
How can you predict landslides?
In most cases, you can predict the landslides if you’re aware of the surroundings. Whenever a landslide happens, it starts with the fall of small stones and rocks. If it is raining and you see small stones and rocks falling ahead on the road, proceed with caution. The best way is to stop and check the surroundings. The video show earlier signs of a landslide on this part of the hill. If you’re going through such a road and see similar damage, be aware of the situation and process with cautious.
In the Himalayan region, the landslides can happen even without the rain, due to the young, unsettled rocks sliding down. However, the rain speeds up the process. The Western Ghats are much older than the Himalaya range and have settled down over time. Landslides are often in these ranges but human activities can cause them. If you get caught in a landslide, there is not much you can do apart from waiting for help. However, you can be cautious and check for signs to avoid them.
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