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Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events

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A special issue of Geosciences (ISSN 2076-3263). This special issue belongs to the section "Natural Hazards".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 December 2022) | Viewed by 53108

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Deodato Tapete

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Guest Editor

Italian Space Agency (ASI), Via del Politecnico snc, 00133 Rome, Italy
Interests: earth observation; radar and optical remote sensing; InSAR; time series analysis; Earth Sciences; environmental geology; natural hazards; urban environments; geoheritage; geoconservation; cultural heritage
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Dr. Francesca Cigna

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Guest Editor

Institute of Atmospheric Sciences and Climate (ISAC), National Research Council (CNR), Via del Fosso del Cavaliere 100, 00133 Rome, Italy
Interests: landscape evolution; geophysical hazards; archaeology; cultural heritage; remote sensing; earth observation; InSAR; landslides; land subsidence; ground instability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to open a new type of publication in Geosciences to collect both original research manuscripts and short communications focusing on geoscientific investigation of recent natural hazard events.

In the current scenario, where anthropogenic settlements and infrastructure are affected by the surrounding physical environment and climatic and meteorological factors exacerbate the vulnerability to social, economic, and cultural impacts due to natural hazards, both scientists and society pay more attention to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, triggering of landslides, floods, and hurricanes.

Given the potential risk affecting local communities, such events are featured in broadcast and social media, with prompt coverage through videos, aerial pictures, and ground-based reports. However, only a scientific assessment carried out with robust research methodologies and reliable analytical techniques can provide the necessary information to understand the causative factors of the event, characterize the process with which it has developed, and provide an objective and evidence-based quantification of damage.

We therefore invite submissions of original research, reports, and technical notes that may focus on one or more natural hazards, with preference for events that have occurred in the course of the last 12 months, including but not limited to the categories below. Should the authors want to check whether their prospective submission fits with the scope of the Special Issue, they are welcome to get in touch with the Guest Editors by sending an abstract outlining the key features of their manuscript.

Dr. Deodato Tapete
Dr. Francesca Cigna
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Geosciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Natural hazards
Earthquakes
Volcanic eruptions
Lahars
Landslides
Floods
Hurricanes
Tsunamis
Sinkholes
Collapses
Subsidence

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Published Papers (13 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 8125 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modeling the Trajectories of Ballistics in the Summit Area of Mt. Etna (Italy) during the 2020–2022 Sequence of Lava Fountains

by Giorgio Costa, Luigi Mereu, Michele Prestifilippo, Simona Scollo and Marco Viccaro

Geosciences 2023, 13(5), 145; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13050145 - 12 May 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1724

Abstract

Between 2020 and 2022, more than sixty lava fountains occurred at Mt. Etna (Italy), which formed high eruption columns rising up to 15 km above sea level (a.s.l.). During those events, several ballistics fell around the summit craters, sometimes reaching touristic areas. The rather frequent activity poses questions on how the impact associated with the fallout of those particles, can be estimated. In this work, we present field data collected soon after the lava fountain on 21 February 2022. This event produced a volcanic plume of about 10 km a.s.l. which was directed toward the southeast. Several ballistics fell in the area of the Barbagallo Craters (just southeast of the summit area at around 2900 m a.s.l.), which is one of the most popular touristic areas on Etna. Hence, we collected several samples and performed laboratory analyses in order to retrieve their size, shape and density. Those values together with a quantitative analysis of the lava fountain were compared with results obtained by a free-available calculator of ballistic trajectories named the ‘Eject!’. A similar approach was hence applied to other lava fountains of the 2020–2022 sequence for which the fallout of large clasts was reported. This work is a first step to identifying in near real-time the area affected by the fallout of ballistics during Etna lava fountains and quantifying their hazard. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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16 pages, 5039 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Assessment of the Record-Breaking 2020 Rainfall in Guinea-Bissau and Impacts of Associated Floods

by Orlando Mendes and Marcelo Fragoso

Geosciences 2023, 13(2), 25; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13020025 - 20 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2724

Abstract

The impacts of Climate Change are quite visible in Guinea-Bissau. Greater irregularity at the beginning and end of the rainy season, as well as in relation to the interannual variability of precipitation, are evidence that shows these phenomena in West African countries and particularly in Guinea-Bissau, where the agriculture is rain-fed. The year 2020 was characterized as very rainy in comparison to the climatological average of 1981–2020, with positive anomalies throughout the country, despite the late arrival of the wet season, which usually occurs in May. July, August, and September 2020 were the rainiest months, registering above a normal frequency of days with precipitation greater than 50 mm. Bissau, the capital, registered a record-breaking annual rainfall and monthly amounts higher than the 90th and 95th percentiles in July and August, respectively. This heavy rain accompanied by strong winds caused flooding in several urban areas and agricultural fields, and the destruction of roads, houses, and infrastructures in different cities across the country. As a way of mitigating these impacts, the government, through the Ministry of Solidarity, made available 100 million CFA francs (6.5 million euros) to help families that were victims of the floods. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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25 pages, 21673 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Back-Analysis of the Abbadia San Salvatore (Mt. Amiata, Italy) Debris Flow of 27–28 July 2019: An Integrated Multidisciplinary Approach to a Challenging Case Study

by Michele Amaddii, Giorgio Rosatti, Daniel Zugliani, Lorenzo Marzini and Leonardo Disperati

Geosciences 2022, 12(10), 385; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12100385 - 17 Oct 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2729

Abstract

On 27–28 July 2019, in a catchment of the Mt. Amiata area (Italy), an extreme rainfall induced a debris flow, which caused a channeled erosive process just upstream of the Abbadia San Salvatore village, the obstruction of a culvert at the entrance to the urban area, and the subsequent flooding of the village. In this paper, we present the back analysis of this event. The complexity of this case study is due to several peculiar characteristics, but above all, to the clogging of the culvert, a phenomenon difficult to simulate numerically. The methodology used for the reconstruction of the event is based on a multidisciplinary approach. A geological field investigation was carried out to characterize the catchment and assess the availability of debris. Then, a cascade of numerical models was employed to reconstruct the debris flow: the FLO-2D software was used to model the runoff along the hydrographic network while the mobile-bed debris flow TRENT2D model, available through the WEEZARD system, was used to quantify both the erosion and deposition processes that occurred during the event. To simulate the culvert clogging, a novel modelling procedure was developed and applied. Despite the challenging framework, the results, in terms of debris volume, erosion rates, deposition area, and timing of the culvert obstruction, agree reasonably well with the observed data. It is worth noticing that these results were obtained mainly using parameters set a priori, namely calibrated on a physical basis. This proves that the proposed methodology is robust and effective, with good predictive capability. Therefore, it may be considered, according to the European Union (EU) Flood Directive, an “appropriate practice and the best available technology that does not imply excessive costs” to support predictive hazard mapping of situations as the one here considered. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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15 pages, 7121 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Soil Loss Potential Assessment for Natural and Post-Fire Conditions in Evia Island, Greece

by Kanella Valkanou, Efthimios Karymbalis, George Bathrellos, Hariklia Skilodimou, Konstantinos Tsanakas, Dimitris Papanastassiou and Kalliopi Gaki-Papanastassiou

Geosciences 2022, 12(10), 367; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12100367 - 1 Oct 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2804

Abstract

A devastating forest fire in August 2021 burned about 517 km² of the northern part of Evia Island, affecting vegetation, soil properties, sediment delivery and the hydrological response of the catchments. This study focuses on the estimation of the annual soil loss in the study area under natural (pre-fire) and post-fire conditions. The assessment of the soil loss potential was conducted with the application of the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), which is an empirical equation and an efficient way to predict soil loss. The USLE factors include rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), the slope and slope length factor (LS), the cover management factor (C) and the erosion control practice factor (P). The USLE quantified the annual soil erosion (in t/ha/year) for both pre- and post-wildfire conditions, and the study area has been classified into various soil loss categories and soil erosion intensity types. The results showed that the annual soil loss before the forest fires ranged from 0 to 1747 t/ha, with a mean value of 253 t/ha, while after the fire the soil loss significantly increased (the highest annual soil loss was estimated at 3255 t/ha and the mean value was 543 t/ha). These values demonstrate a significant post-fire change in mean annual soil loss that corresponds to an increase of 114% compared to the pre-fire natural condition. The area that is undergoing high erosion rates after the extreme wildfire event increased by approximately 7%, while the area of moderate rates increased by 2%. The calculated maximum potential of soil erosion, before and after the 2021 extreme wildfire event, has been visualized on spatial distribution maps of the average annual soil loss for the study area. The present study underlines the significant post-fire increase in soil loss as part of the identification of the more vulnerable to erosion areas that demand higher priority regarding the protective/control measures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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23 pages, 16866 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Methodological Approach for the Study of Historical Centres of High Architectural Value Affected by Geo-Hydrological Hazards: The Case of Lanciano (Abruzzo Region—Central Italy)

by Nicola Sciarra, Massimo Mangifesta, Luigi Carabba and Luigina Mischiatti

Geosciences 2022, 12(5), 193; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12050193 - 28 Apr 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2200

Abstract

The study of geo-hydrological problems in urban contexts of considerable historical importance plays an extremely interesting role in the safeguarding of architectural and artistic assets of great value. The need to guarantee the conservation of monumental heritage is an ethical and moral requirement that new generations have a duty to support. Operating in urbanised contexts is extremely difficult, due to the presence of infrastructures and underground services that prevent the execution of classical surveys and prospecting. The technologies currently available, however, allow us to also investigate the subsoil in a non-destructive way and to control the evolution of active natural phenomena in a continuous and automated way with remote-sensing techniques. The methodological approach consists of the development of a series of cognitive investigations, aimed at identifying the elements of weakness of the soil system, so as to be able to subsequently undertake the most appropriate decisions for the reduction of geo-hydrological risks. The case here analysed concerns Lanciano city (Central Italy), famous for its pre-Roman origins, that was affected by a violent storm in the summer of 2018. This event devastated the inhabited Centre with flooding of all the neighbourhoods and the collapse of parts of buildings. For this reason, direct and indirect geognostic investigations were carried out within the Historical Centre, which is of considerable architectural value, and an important monitoring system was installed. The actual geo-hydrological hazard was planned using 3D numerical modelling to define the hydraulic and deformational behaviour of the subsoil. Comparison between the modelling performed and the monitoring data acquired has allowed us to understand the complex behaviour of the subsoil and the subsidence mechanisms of the Historic Centre. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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24 pages, 8000 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Geophysical and Societal Dimensions of Floods in Manitoba, Canada: A Social Vulnerability Assessment of the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews

by C. Emdad Haque, Khandakar Hasan Mahmud, David Walker and Jobaed Ragib Zaman

Geosciences 2022, 12(2), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12020056 - 24 Jan 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3494

Abstract

Being strongly influenced by the landscape of the Red River Valley, geophysical and a variety of sociodemographic and economic factors, the characteristics of floods are complex in the Province of Manitoba, Canada, which causes substantial loss and damage to lives and properties. The primary objectives of this study are two-fold: (i) to identify the geophysical and human-induced conditions of floods, and examine the trend in flood loss and damage in the Province of Manitoba, Canada; and (ii) to analyze the social vulnerability perspectives of floods in the Rural Municipality of St. Andrews, as a local community case study. Using the Delphi technique, primary data were procured from the field for community-level vulnerability analysis. Secondary data for a provincial-level analysis were collected from various public domains, including governmental departments and other non-government sources. The results reveal that a nested set of geophysical and societal factors determine the degree of vulnerability of individual community members. In Manitoba, it was found that socioeconomic damages caused by floods have increased considerably over time despite undertaking costly structural flood mitigation measures. We conclude that minimization of flood damages requires complementing structural measures with knowledge-sharing, collaboration among pertinent institutions, and the adoption of an interactive flood management system approach. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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12 pages, 2866 KiB

Open AccessArticle

ICESat-2 Applications for Investigating Emerging Volcanoes

by Christine Simurda, Lori A. Magruder, Jonathan Markel, James B. Garvin and Daniel A. Slayback

Geosciences 2022, 12(1), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences12010040 - 14 Jan 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3875

Abstract

Submarine volcanism in shallow waters (<100 m), particularly in remote settings, is difficult to monitor quantitatively and, in the rare formation of islands, it is challenging to understand the rapid-paced erosion. However, these newly erupted volcanic islands become observable to airborne and/or satellite remote sensing instruments. NASA’s ICESat-2 satellite laser altimeter, combined with visible imagery (optical and microwave), provide a novel method of evaluating the elevation characteristics of newly emerged volcanoes and their subaerial eruption products. Niijima Fukutoku-Okanoba (NFO) is a submarine volcano 1300 km south of Tokyo (Ogasawara Archipelago of Japan) that periodically breaches the ocean surface to create new islands that are subsequently eroded. The recent eruption in August 2021 is a rare opportunity to investigate this island evolution using high-resolution satellite datasets with geodetic-quality ICESat-2 altimetry. Lansdat-8 and Planet imagery provide a qualitative analysis of the exposed volcanic deposits, while ICESat-2 products provide elevation profiles necessary to quantify the physical surface structures. This investigation determines an innovative application for ICESat-2 data in evaluating newly emerged islands and how the combination of satellite remote sensing (visible and lidar) to investigate these short-lived volcanic features can improve our understanding of the volcanic island system in ways not previously possible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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21 pages, 15842 KiB

Open AccessArticle

LLUNPIY Simulations of the 1877 Northward Catastrophic Lahars of Cotopaxi Volcano (Ecuador) for a Contribution to Forecasting the Hazards

by Valeria Lupiano, Paolo Catelan, Claudia R. Calidonna, Francesco Chidichimo, Gino M. Crisci, Valeria Rago, Salvatore Straface and Salvatore Di Gregorio

Geosciences 2021, 11(2), 81; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences11020081 - 12 Feb 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2841

Abstract

LLUNPIY (lahar modeling by local rules based on an underlying pick of yoked processes, from the Quechua word “llunp’iy“, meaning flood) is a cellular automata (CA) model that simulates primary and secondary lahars, here applied to replicate those that occurred during the huge 1877 Cotopaxi Volcano eruption. The lahars flowing down the southwestern flanks of the volcano were already satisfactorily simulated in previous investigations of ours, assuming two possible different triggering mechanisms, i.e., the sudden and homogeneous melting of the summit ice and snow cap due to pyroclastic flows and the melting of the glacier parts hit by free-falling pyroclastic bombs after being upwardly ejected during the volcanic eruption. In a similar fashion, we apply here the CA LLUNPIY model to simulate the 1877 lahars sprawling out the Cotopaxi northern slopes and eventually impacting densely populated areas. Our preliminary results indicate that several important public infrastructures (among them the regional potable water supply system) and the Valle de Los Chillos and other Quito suburban areas might be devastated by northward-bound lahars, should a catastrophic Cotopaxi eruption comparable to the 1877 one occur in the near future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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16 pages, 5485 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Formation and Outburst of the Toguz-Bulak Glacial Lake in the Northern Teskey Range, Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan

by Mirlan Daiyrov, Chiyuki Narama, Andreas Kääb and Takeo Tadono

Geosciences 2020, 10(11), 468; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10110468 - 19 Nov 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3086

Abstract

In Kyrgyzstan, outburst flood disasters from glacial lakes are increasing. An example is the sudden drainage on 8 August 2019 of the Toguz-Bulak glacial lake in the Tosor river basin of the northern Tien Shan region. In this study, we used remote sensing and field surveys to examine the reasons for the outburst. We found that the lake area changed from 0.021 km² to 0.002 km² due to the outburst, in which most of the initial 130,000 m³ of water discharged within four hours. In examining the longer-term behavior of this lake, we found that from 2010 through 2019, it appears in June and disappears in September every year. Its maximum area occurs in late July and early August. With the expansion of the lake basin between 2010 and 2019, the lake also increased greatly in size, particularly so in the three years before the outburst, linked to high summer temperatures and the resulting higher inflow of glacier meltwater, finally leading to the sudden drainage in 2019. Before this outburst, a 2-m high moraine dam retained the lake. Continuously inflowing meltwater and the related increasing pressure by the lake water mass eventually broke the moraine dam. Satellite radar interferometry revealed active displacement fringes in the lake basin and moraine dam due to the melting and subsidence of buried ice. An analysis using digital elevation models from 1964 and 2010 also confirms the surface lowering in the lake basin by up to 8.5 m and on the moraine dam by 2 m. Such lowering of the proglacial moraine complex destabilized the moraine dam. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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26 pages, 20281 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ground Surface Deformation Detection in Complex Landslide Area—Bobonaro, Timor-Leste—Using SBAS DInSAR, UAV Photogrammetry, and Field Observations

by Benjamim Hopffer Martins, Motoyuki Suzuki, Putu Edi Yastika and Norikazu Shimizu

Geosciences 2020, 10(6), 245; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10060245 - 24 Jun 2020

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 7242

Abstract

During the past 10 years, Timor-Leste has concentrated all its efforts on infrastructure development. However, it has not achieved enough due to unexpected ground deformation in mountainous areas that is seriously affecting road constructions, etc. In order to design roads and other infrastructure under such difficult conditions, it is important to know the present and future ground conditions. Continuous monitoring is a significant methods of detecting ground deformation and providing essential information to realize an effective design. The problem arises of “How can ground deformation be monitored in extensive areas, which are generally located in mountain areas that are difficult to access?” Differential Interferometry Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR) has recently been applied to monitor displacement in extensive areas. In addition, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry is useful for detecting the deformation in detail. Both methods are advantageous in that they do not require any sensors. Therefore, the combination of DInSAR and UAV photogrammetry is one of the solutions for monitoring the ground deformation in Timor-Leste. In this paper, DInSAR and UAV photogrammetry are applied to unstable ground in the Bobonaro region of Timor-Leste to find the recent ground deformation, since 2007, due to earthquakes and hard rainfall events. It is found that DInSAR is useful for screening usual and unusual ground behavior and that UAV photogrammetry is flexible to use and can detect displacements with cm accuracy after the DInSAR screening. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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26 pages, 14315 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Earthquakes on Flood Hazards: A Case Study From Christchurch, New Zealand

by Mark Quigley and Brendan Duffy

Geosciences 2020, 10(3), 114; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10030114 - 23 Mar 2020

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 9537

Abstract

Earthquakes can influence flood hazards by altering the flux, volumes, and distributions of surface and/or subsurface waters and causing physical changes to natural and engineered environments (e.g., elevation, topographic relief, permeability) that affect surface and subsurface hydrologic regimes. This paper analyzes how earthquakes increased flood hazards in Christchurch, New Zealand, using empirical observations and seismological data. Between 4 September 2010 and 4 December 2017, this region hosted one moment magnitude (Mw) 7.1 earthquake, 3 earthquakes with Mw ≥ 6, and 31 earthquakes with local magnitude (ML) ≥ 5. Flooding related to liquefaction-induced groundwater pore-water fluid pressure perturbations and groundwater expulsion occurred in at least six earthquakes. Flooding related to shaking-induced ground deformations (e.g., subsidence) occurred in at least four earthquakes. Flooding related to tectonic deformations of the land surface (fault surface rupture and/or folding) occurred in at least two earthquakes. At least eight earthquakes caused damage to surface (e.g., buildings, bridges, roads) and subsurface (e.g., pipelines) infrastructure in areas of liquefaction and/or flooding. Severe liquefaction and associated groundwater-expulsion flooding in vulnerable sediments occurred at peak ground accelerations as low as 0.15 to 0.18 g (proportion of gravity). Expected return times of liquefaction-induced flooding in vulnerable sediments were estimated to be 100 to 500 years using the Christchurch seismic hazard curve, which is consistent with emerging evidence from paleo-liquefaction studies. Liquefaction-induced subsidence of 100 to 250 mm was estimated for 100-year peak ground acceleration return periods in parts of Christchurch. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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20 pages, 6293 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Big Data, Small Island: Earth Observations for Improving Flood and Landslide Risk Assessment in Jamaica

by Cheila Avalon-Cullen, Christy Caudill, Nathaniel K. Newlands and Markus Enenkel

Geosciences 2023, 13(3), 64; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences13030064 - 24 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3091

Abstract

The Caribbean region is highly vulnerable to multiple hazards. Resultant impacts may be derived from single or multiple cascading risks caused by hydrological-meteorological, seismic, geologic, or anthropological triggers, disturbances, or events. Studies suggest that event records and data related to hazards, risk, damage, and loss are limited in this region. National Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) planning and response require data of sufficient quantity and quality to generate actionable information, statistical inferences, and insights to guide continual policy improvements for effective DRR, national preparedness, and response in both time and space. To address this knowledge gap, we review the current state of knowledge, data, models, and tools, identifying potential opportunities, capacity needs, and long-term benefits for integrating Earth Observation (EO) understanding, data, models, and tools to further enhance and strengthen the national DRR framework using two common disasters in Jamaica: floods and landslides. This review serves as an analysis of the current state of DRR management and assess future opportunities. Equally, to illustrate and guide other United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) priority countries in the Pacific region, known as Small Island Developing States (SIDS), to grapple with threats of multiple and compounding hazards in the face of increasing frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme weather events, and climate change impact. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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13 pages, 8280 KiB

Open AccessCase Report

Urban Engineered Slope Collapsed in Rome on February 14th, 2018: Results from Remote Sensing Monitoring

by Francesca Bozzano, Carlo Esposito, Paolo Mazzanti, Federico Innocca and Saverio Romeo

Geosciences 2020, 10(9), 331; https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences10090331 - 21 Aug 2020

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3374

Abstract

On February 14th, 2018, in the North-Western sector of the Municipality of Rome (Central Italy), in the framework of an excavation for building construction, a portion of a piling wall piling wall collapsed in an already densely urbanized area. Soil behind the collapsed piling wall slipped inside the excavation site dragging seven cars parked on one side of the road running parallel to the piling wall and affecting some residential buildings located on the opposite side of the road. Fortunately, no injuries were counted but the 22 families living in the buildings next to the damaged wall were evacuated. Following the piling wall collapse, the Civil Protection of Rome, thanks to the technical support of the Research Centre on Geological Risks (CERI) of the Sapienza University of Rome, started a continuous monitoring of the affected area through remote sensing techniques. In the first hours following the collapse, a Terrestrial Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometer (TInSAR) and a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) were installed with the aim to control the evolution of the process, to support the local authority to manage the associated residual risk, and to ensure the safety of workers during emergency operations. In this paper we discuss some of the results obtained by the monitoring of the involved area. Thanks to the comparisons between different surveys and the reconstruction of the pre-event geometries, the total volume involved in the failure was estimated around 850 m³. In addition, through the analysis of data acquired by the 18 multi-temporal TLS scans and the three and a half months of continuous TInSAR monitoring, the movement involving a portion of the filling material used for stabilization works was observed and described. Such movement, reaching a total displacement of about 270–300 mm, was monitored and reported in real time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Scientific Assessment of Recent Natural Hazard Events)

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