I was in the library today and was thinking about some of the reports I had heard from Oso, Washington.
The emergency responders, in the early hours, simply waded into the slurry to find survivors. They then had to be rescued. But, the reports were the slurry was about chest deep.
Starting to get the picture?
The idea is to assess the entire physics of the slide and decide the type of material that has to be used for the stilts to support homes in areas where landslides are possible. It might have to be steel I-beams, but, even they can be coated with material to make them look like wood.
This type of design is not at all unusual along the shores of the USA, especially the East Coast. The homes usually treat the lower story as a storage area and parking slab. Some have walls and doors, but, they are break away when flooded and receiving tide pressure.
I think the name of the community is Long Beach Island and it is in New Jersey. There was a hurricane that passed over the community and the ocean and the bay met from flooding. The island was completely covered with water. When the water receded the homes on stilts were still standing, albeit without the walls of the first floor, but, the homes were intact.
Now, landslide slurry is not water. Even wind driven water. But, this is less about homes and their preservation, so much as the lives inside. There needs to be a design researched and then legislated to enforce the requirement for such supports to save lives.
I don't know why we haven't done this before? It came into my head and I wanted to scream. It is so very, very obvious how to protect those people's lives.
One other thing, the slurry viscosity will effect the design of the structure, but, there were reports of some people (at least two children, one an infant) riding the wave of the slurry and surviving. All people need is a chance to breath and stay away from the weight of the slurry in order to survive. We have to decide how best to insure their well being because there has to be a way.
Saving their lives can't be based on a warning. The eyewitnesses stated the slide completed it's fall within seconds. Whatever is going to save these folks lives has to be built into their life and is automatically engaged in order to protect them. There is no time for them to react.
