Survey of Landslide Warning Systems and their Applicability in Mauritius

Abstract

Landslide is major problem in several countries causing loss of lives and major infrastructural damage. Several systems have been set-up for monitoring and predicting landslides in different countries where this problem is prevalent. These systems integrate sensing mechanism with communication systems and GPS to detect landslide conditions and alert concerned parties via sms, emails and other appropriate means. Wireless sensor networks have also been widely deployed for landslide monitoring. Mauritius which is an island nation situated in the Indian Ocean has recently faced several problems due to extreme climatic conditions such as torrential rains and flash floods that have led to major landslide problems in different parts of the island. However, to date, there is no adequate system in place to monitor landslides. This paper surveys the different landslide modelling and warning systems that have been deployed worldwide and assesses their suitability for Mauritius. Given the excellent mobile network coverage available in Mauritius, a landslide warning system based on sms notifications appears to be a viable solution for Mauritius. A potential framework for a landslide monitoring system for Mauritius is therefore proposed along with a feasibility analysis.