Daily Landslide Observatory Report: March 24, 2026
1. USA: Emergency Crews Tackle “Bus-Sized” Boulders on I-5 Bellingham
Operations to reopen the primary West Coast transit artery have reached a critical phase today, March 24, 2026, following the major landslide south of Bellingham, Washington.
- The Status: Contractor Interwest Construction Inc. has begun the hazardous task of clearing approximately 2,000 to 3,000 cubic yards of debris. WSDOT reports that the slide contains massive boulders, some larger than city buses, which require specialized heavy equipment to break apart.
- Risk Reduction: Work is strictly limited to daylight hours due to ongoing concerns about slope stability. Geotechnical engineers remain on-site, as several pickup-truck-sized rocks high on the slope are currently “unstable and unsupported.”
- Infrastructure Impact: Northbound I-5 remains completely closed between mileposts 246 and 250. WSDOT expects to finalize a full geotechnical report and provide a repair timeline by Wednesday, March 25.
- More Info: WSDOT North Updates | Cascadia Daily News
2. Ethiopia: Gamo Zone Toll Reaches 125 Amid Search for Missing
The humanitarian impact of the mid-March landslides in Southern Ethiopia has continued to rise over the last 24 hours as recovery teams reach more isolated villages.
- The Scale: Official reports from the South Ethiopia Regional State confirm 125 fatalities and over 11,000 people displaced. The landslides, which struck the districts of Gacho Baba, Kamba, and Bonke, have destroyed 190 homes and decimated local farmlands.
- Trigger: Relentless seasonal rainfall in the Ethiopian Highlands, acting on steep volcanic slopes already sensitized by prior storms.
- Strategic Response: Following three days of national mourning, the focus has shifted to long-term relocation. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia (CBCE) and regional authorities are coordinating a transition from emergency shelters in churches to more permanent safe zones, while warning that cloudy skies and light rain forecast for the next 24 hours keep the threat of “delayed failures” alive.
- More Info: ReliefWeb Disaster Update
3. South America: 23,000 Displaced in Peru as “Coastal El Niño” Persists
A weekly regional update released on March 23–24 highlights the massive geohazard footprint across the Andean and Amazonian regions due to the active El Niño Costero.
- The Data: In Peru, seasonal rains have resulted in 92 deaths and the displacement of over 23,000 people since the start of the year. Parallel disasters in Ecuador have affected over 71,000 people, with landslides damaging 38 bridges and compromising 45 km of roads.
- Risk Management: The National El Niño Commission (ENFEN) maintains its alert status, as warm sea surface temperature anomalies are expected to sustain extreme convective rainfall through the end of the year.
- Policy Note: A new technical study by World Weather Attribution (WWA) regarding similar slides in Brazil recently concluded that “warnings alone are insufficient” in these regions. The researchers call for physical slope stabilization and land-use reform to move residents out of the 304 “high-risk” zones already identified by geological surveys.
- More Info: ReliefWeb Latin America Situation Update
Engineering Insight: Antecedent Moisture vs. Triggering Events
As an engineer, you might note the recurring theme in today’s report: the “Delayed Failure.” In both Washington and Ethiopia, the most catastrophic movements occurred or continue to threaten after the peak rainfall intensity. This underscores the importance of monitoring pore-water pressure ($\mu$) and the long-term dissipation of saturation in geotechnical risk algorithms, rather than relying solely on real-time rainfall gauges.
Survivor rescued after 3 days in Ethiopia’s Gamo zone landslide This video captures the miraculous rescue of a survivor after 72 hours, providing a visceral look at the mud depth and the extreme logistical challenges faced by search teams in the Gamo Zone.