Landslide Photo Collections

Searchable USGS Photo and Multimedia Archive with Ordering Information

The October 8, 2005, Kashmir earthquake (M 7.6) triggered several thousand landslides, mainly rock falls and rock slides, in the epicentral area near the cities of Muzafarrabad and Balakot, Pakistan. Most of these were shallow, coalescing rock slides emanating from highly sheared and deformed limestone and dolomite of the Precambrian Muzafarrabad Formation. The largest landslide triggered by the earthquake is located approximately 32 kilometers southeast of Muzafarrabad in a tributary valley of the Jhelum River. This landslide is a debris avalanche of approximately 80 million cubic meters volume within the Miocene Murree Formation consisting of mixed sandstone, mudstone, shale, and limestone. The avalanche buried the village of Dandbeh and resulted in approximately 1,000 fatalities, according to local residents. For more information please see USGS Open-file Report online: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/

  • Please See this USGS Publication for details; http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf. Location map (colored shaded relief) showing the location of the Kashmir earthquake epicenter and the Hattian Bala landslide. (Maps from Google Earth)
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  • Oblique aerial view of the Hattian Bala debris avalanche showing the avalanche scarp, travel path and debris, the lake in the Karli drainage, a secondary slump at the right side of the photograph (arrow), and area of fractures (arrow at left of photograph). (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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  • Oblique aerial view of slopes above the reservoir in the Karli stream drainage with numerous fractures (lower left in photograph) extending through the terrain parallel to the slope direction and to the strike of bedding. (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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  • Oblique aerial view of the debris impounding the lake in the Karli stream drainage (Photograph courtesy of USAID). (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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  • Near-vertical view of the Hattian Bala debris avalanche and the two lakes impounded by the landslide debris in the Karli and Tang valleys. (Photograph from DigitalGlobe Quickbird II Natural Color, October 27, 2005). Debris traveled approximately 1.5 kilometers from the crest of Dana Hill to Karli Valley. Secondary slump is indicated by arrows. Area of concentrated fractures is noted in lower left of the photograph. (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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  • Lake impounded by the debris in the Tang stream drainage. (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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  • Northward aerial view of village of Hattian showing bridge on main highway to India and other permanent and temporary dwellings near stream level of the landslide-dammed Karli tributary to the Jhelum River. (For more information: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1052/pdf/ofr-2006-1052.pdf)
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