Landslide event on 24 June in Sichuan Province, China: Preliminary investigation and analysis

This paper reports on a massive landslide event, in which 8 million cubic meters of earth and rocks slid down from the top of a mountain in the village of Xinmo, located in the county of Maoxian, in the province of Sichuan, China, on 24 June 2017. This landslide resulted in 10 fatalities and 73 people were reported as missing. This paper details the preliminary investigation, the joint-force rescue activity, and the analysis of the nearby topography, rainfall, and seismic fracture zone. The combined effects of large amounts of rainwater, steep topography, deep-seated sliding interface, and significant altitude difference between the highest point of the mountain and the Xinmo villagers’ houses are considered as the main influencing factor that triggered this landslide event. To develop geological disaster-prone areas in the future, four main recommendations to reduce casualties and environmental impacts are provided in this paper.