Did we have any idea this happened yesterday? My Mother mentioned it in a phone call.

[Mira]

Mountains in Maierato Italy simply slid away without warning. Mom lives in Germany, closer than we are to Italy, and way closer than we are to news about the things that happen in our world, on our planet, in the parameter of what we ought to be knowledgeable about.

I talked to her yesterday, and meant to look it up sooner.
Did any of you learn about this in the US bringing us world news?

Maierato Evacuated
All of Maierato’s 2300 or so inhabitants have been evacuated as a precautionary measure.  Many of those forced out by the landslide are staying with relatives, although some 300 people are staying in a local sports centre and police training centre.
A Reuter’s Italy press report states that poor weather conditions are forecast for the next 24 to 30 hours in the area.  This will increase the risk of further landslides.
Landslide is ‘frana’ in Italian.  If you are hunting for a house in Italy in an uphill area, ask a few questions about the area and find out if it is susceptible to landslides.   Be suspicious  if the price of your dream property appears to be very low.
Landslides can sweep houses away in the blink of an eye.



http://daveslandslideblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/watch-this-extraordinary-landslide.html

[Tunkamerica]

1. it was on my local news.

[Mira]

3. Hi, neighbor, GOOD.

I was involved in alot of other things, and for a while forgot after Mom told me.
I get so frustrated with the narrow vision of our news coverage.
I'm glad to get feedback that it was covered.

Tell you what...it's scaring the hell out of the Europeans.

[emilyg]

14. Saw it on Fox news.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I remember seeing a thread about this here, yesterday...

I don't remember just where though...

:shrug:

[frazzled]

4. Sounds like it's time to be ... "Careful"

It's always a good time to watch Guy Maddin's film Careful, about a sleepy Alpine village whose citizens are so fearful of setting off an avalanche that they do everything to avoid speaking too loudly or treading too heavily. They even attempt to suppress their impure thoughts for fear of the geologic consequences .... until emotional eruptions occur that ... oh no!

[asjr]

5. I think NBC devoted all of 1-1/2 minutes to it.

[elleng]

6. I posted it, Mira.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x518440

video

[obxhead]

7. well, I saw nothing about it.

and funny enough my Italian friends that I speak with daily didn't mention anything about it either. I'll have to ask them about it in a few hours when they get up.

[elleng]

8. Where are your friends?

It was in Calabria.

[obxhead]

10. I embarrassed to say I'm not exactly sure.

One lives on a small island, possibly actually in Malta, the other lives in northern Italy. I IM daily with them on skype, I'll be sure to write it down when I ask this time. :blush:

[elleng]

11. Its ok, obx; say Ciao!

You speak with them daily? Are you in VA (I'm in MD) or elsewhere?

[obxhead]

12. yeah

well, not speak realy, but IM through skype. (part of an international game site)

I also am once again a resident of VA. I had escaped for a short time, but it sucked me back in.

[Suich]

9. This is the 1st I've heard of it.

That's one scary video!

[SoCalDem]

13. reminded me of Balestrino

(more pics at link)

Balestrino is quite a strange case in that it was extremely difficult to find any decent information on it. At least on the abandonment itself. No one is quite sure when the town was established, though records date back to before the eleventh century – when Balestrino was owned by the Benedictine abbey of San Pietro dei Monti. As you can see from the pictures, the upper part of the town consists of a Castle (of Marquis) and the lower part a parish church (of Sant’Andrea). Records of population go back to around 1860, when around 800-850 people lived there. Mainly famers who took advantage of the landscape to farm olive trees.

In the late nineteenth century, the North-West coast of Italy was struck by numerous earhquakes. One of these in 1887 (magnitude 6.7) destroyed some villages in the area of Savona, and although no official records show Balestrino was affected it coincides with much repair work and a dip in population. Finally in 1953 the town was abandoned due to ‘geological instablility’, and the remaining inhabitants (around 400) were moved to safer ground to the west. The derelict part of Balestrino that has stood untouched and inaccessible for fifty plus years is currently undergoing planning for redevelopment. Today around 500 people remain in the town’s newer area which is a good kilometer down the road.

[sinkingfeeling]

15. A video of the mudslide was played on ABC evening news last night. And it was posted here.