DETERMINING THE NATURE OF INJURIES SUSTAINED IN LANDSLIDE DISASTERS

The perception of the impact of landslides is low in comparison with major earthquakes, storms, or volcanic eruptions, but their aggregated cost, both in terms of loss of life and economic damage is very substantial. For example, the majority of the 20,000 deaths associated with Hurricane Mitch (1999), the 30,000 deaths in Venezuela (1999), and the 4,500+ deaths in Haiti/Dominican Republic (2004) were the result of debris flows triggered by slope failures. In this study we have examined the nature of injuries sustained in landslide disasters. Remarkably, data on injuries sustained in landslides and their survivability appear never before to have been compiled. This has left on-site workers at landslide disasters to make subjective decisions on the survivability of those trapped and whether to mount a rescue, or a recovery. Our work represents a systematic attempt to relate the type of landslide with the medical consequences. At each site we attempt to: (1) determine survival times based on the injuries sustained; (2) determine the role that structures play in increasing survival; and (3) the public health implications of not recovering bodies trapped in a landslide mass.

The legal requirement for medical examinations of fatalities to determine the cause of death varies between countries and often within individual jurisdictions. It can also be dependent upon the level of resources and expertise available in the immediate aftermath. In our experience data have more easily been obtained from the medical records of fatalities. This requires locating the medical examiners who conducted the autopsies and obtaining permission to see the records. Variability exits in the conduct of such examinations and in the use of medical terminology. To compare differing data sets we have divided the human body into head, torso and pelvis plus legs and related reported injuries with survival times. High lethality injuries cause death instantaneously or within minutes. Serious injuries likely require surgery within 2 to 4 hours if the person is to survive. Low lethality injuries which can vary in combination and are non life threatening at least in the short term. Finally, there are injuries which were likely sustained after death.