Hypermobility of a Catastrophic Earthquake-Induced Loess Landslide

Landslide mobility refers to how far and fast a landslide can move downslope. It controls landslide impact areas and damage power. Highly mobile landslides are often initiated on slopes steeper than 30°. However, on 18 December 2023, an earthquake-induced landslide (35°52′54″N, 102°51′10″E) exhibited extraordinary mobility, with an overall travel angle of 1.5°, breaking an on-land landslide record. The landslide originated on a gentle slope (3.6°), eroded an earth dam along its travel path, and finally destroyed 51 houses and claimed 20 lives. Remote sensing and field surveys were conducted to provide morphological characteristics of the hazard chain. A numerical program, EDDA (Erosion–Deposition Debris Flow Analysis), was employed to reproduce the flow dynamics and investigate the causes of hypermobility. The findings reveal three primary causes of hypermobility: (1) liquefaction of the saturated silty loess stratum due to the combined effects of irrigation activity and seismic loading, (2) the loose and macro-pore structure of loess, and (3) confined topography and icy channel bed. The mechanisms revealed have broad implications for understanding fluidized mass movements on gentle slopes in seismically active regions. •An earthquake-induced flowslide showed hypermobility, triggering a hazard chain.•The flowslide originated from gentle terrain (3.6°) with a small travel angle (1.5°).•Flowslide dynamics were reproduced using the continuum numerical program, EDDA.•Liquefaction of saturated silty loess was the primary cause of hypermobility.•Porous structure of loess and confined topography enhanced the flowslide mobility.