Heavy rainfall from an atmospheric river triggered mudslides in the Los Angeles area on Jan. 9, 2023.
Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG via Getty Images
Mudslides start with destabilized land, often from wildfires, and then rain drives the cascading disaster.
A firefighter checks homes after a mudslide that killed 23 people in Montecito, Calif., in 2018.
Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Studies show climate change is raising the risk of cascading hazards that alone might not be extreme but add up to human disasters. Communities and government agencies aren’t prepared.
As many as 20 people are dead and dozens missing following the Southern California mudslides.
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez
A watershed scientist explains why post-wildfire landscapes are so susceptible to landslides – and why those risks are poised to rise.