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Rainfall-induced landslides in Hulu Kelang area, Malaysia

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Abstract

Hulu Kelang is known as one of the most landslide-prone areas in Malaysia. The area has been constantly hit by landslide hazards since 1990s. This paper provides an insight into the mechanism of rainfall-induced landslide in the Hulu Kelang area. Rainfall patterns prior to the occurrences of five selected case studies were first analyzed. The results showed that daily rainfall information is insufficient for predicting landslides in the area. Rainfalls of longer durations, i.e., 3–30 days prior to the landslides should be incorporated into the prediction model. Numerical simulations on a selected case study demonstrated that both matric suction and factor of safety decreased steadily over time until they reached the lowest values on the day of landslide occurrence. Redistribution of infiltrated rainwater in the soil mass could be a reason for the slow response of failure mechanism to rainfall. Based on 21 rainfall-induced landslides that had occurred in the area, three rainfall thresholds were developed as attempts to predict the occurrence of rainfall-induced landslide. The rainfall intensity–duration threshold developed based on the local rainfall conditions provided a reasonably good prediction to the landslide occurrence. The cumulative 3- versus 30-day antecedent precipitation index threshold chart was capable of giving the most reliable prediction with the limiting threshold line for major landslide yielded a reliability of 97.6 %.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge and appreciate the provisions of rainfall and landslide data by the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ), the Slope Engineering Branch of Public Works Department, Malaysia (PWD), and the Department of Irrigation and Drainage, Malaysia (DID), without which this study would not have been possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Engineering and Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, 53300, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Min Lee Lee, Kim Yeong Ng & Yuk Feng Huang

  2. State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, Beijing, 100048, China

    Wei Chao Li

  3. China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing, 100048, China

    Wei Chao Li

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  1. Min Lee Lee
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  2. Kim Yeong Ng
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  3. Yuk Feng Huang
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  4. Wei Chao Li
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Correspondence to Min Lee Lee.

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Lee, M.L., Ng, K.Y., Huang, Y.F. et al. Rainfall-induced landslides in Hulu Kelang area, Malaysia. Nat Hazards 70, 353–375 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0814-8

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