Researcher: Distance From a Mountain Landslide's Epicentre Does Not Guarantee Safety
Kristaps Lamsters, a glacier researcher at the University of Latvia, explains that a flow of water, ice and rock from a glacier collapse or landslide can reach places far from where it began.
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Being far from a glacier or a landslide site does not in itself mean a person is safe. This was stressed by Kristaps Lamsters, associate professor at the University of Latvia and a glacier researcher, on the podcast "Kas tas vispār bija?!" ("What Was That?!") by the news agency LETA.
The flow can travel far downstream
According to the researcher, the danger comes from a rapid flow of water, ice and rock moving along mountain valleys. Such a flow can travel a long way downstream, so places at a considerable distance from the original site are not automatically protected.
Distance from a glacier or landslide site therefore cannot be treated as a sufficient guarantee of safety. How the mass moves along the valley is what matters.
