![]() Erosion from the ocean can often wash away the stable base along the coastline below the area, causing the instability, resulting in either a planar or rotational failure. These are typically comprised of materials like bedrock pieces, gravel, cobble, boulders, sand, silt and clay.Īs stated earlier, water often contributes to landslides. There are multiple types of slope instability, such as rotational, block/transitional, rock fall, topple, debris flow and avalanche, earth flow, creep, and lateral spread. This causes mudslides or landslides, much like this one in Big Sur or the deadly 2015 slide that occurred between Gorman and Santa Clarita, California. This creates pressure that pushes against the upper layers of soil, assisted by gravity, and as a result the soil will move down the slope. When a hillside has cracks in the soil layers, water can enter those cracks. Because some soils are expansive, dry conditions will cause them to shrink, allowing water from rain or other sources to enter the cracks and destabilize the soil. The water will find the path of least resistance, which can often be cracks in the ground caused by a lack of soil moisture. Slope instability can be caused by multiple factors such as rain water accumulating and moving across ground surfaces. When the side of a hill or mountain, also known as a slope, becomes unstable a landslide can occur. What Might Have Caused the Big Sur Landslide While certainly not the fault of any one person or property owner, this landslide is a good example of why it’s important for property owners to ensure that they keep up on routine inspection of any slopes on or around their properties. After cleanup, Caltrans will most likely either re-route the highway or construct a tunnel through the debris.īig Sur, a popular tourist spot, will surely suffer if access to the area can’t be restored prior to July when the tourist season kicks off. The landslide may continue to move over the next few days or weeks. ![]() Caltrans’ teams of engineers will monitor the site for weeks before they deem it safe for cleanup. Luckily nobody was killed, since the portion of the highway affected had been closed off due to smaller, earlier landslides that have been occurring since January 2017. Anything in its path was most likely swept away into the ocean below - altering the iconic coastline for years to come. A portion of Highway 1, not far from Big Sur, was buried under 30 to 40 feet of soil and debris. On California suffered its biggest landslide since the 1980s. ![]() Wondering what caused the Big Sur landslide of 2017? Landslides can be one of nature’s most catastrophic forces.
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