Barran Press - Ali Al-Aqili
On the morning of Monday, November 11, 2024, residents of Al-Tawila district in Al-Mahwit Governorate, northwestern Yemen, woke up to a devastating rockslide that claimed the lives of seven members of a single family and injured three others.
Activists on social media shared images of the collapsed home of Mohammad Hazam Al-Bars in the Bani Al-Khayat area of Al-Tawila. The house, located at the base of a steep mountain, was completely destroyed by the rockslide.
This incident is not the first, but it is one of the worst among the recurring rockslides in many Yemeni governorates, which intensify during the rainy season. The precarious rocks in Yemen's mountainous regions pose another lethal threat to citizens living beneath or near them, survivors of war bullets, or epidemics that have claimed hundreds of lives.
Unsafe Conditions
Regarding the rockslide in Bani Al-Khayat, Walid Abbas Al-Saqqaf, a member of the Yemeni Engineers Syndicate, explained that the rockslides in Al-Mahwit result from the local authorities' neglect of these potentially unstable rocks situated above inhabited villages and homes.
Engineer Abbas told "Barran Press" that many such rocks are found in Al-Mahwit and other mountainous governorates, noting that they "can slip at any moment due to their unstable positioning on the mountains or being suspended in critical areas, regardless of their type."
He explained that "suspended rocks are prone to fall regardless of their type due to their unsafe position, and homes built beneath such rocks put their inhabitants at risk at any time."
Repeated rockslides occur due to soil and rock inconsistency, the presence of cracks and fissures within mountains and between rocks, or soil infiltrating the rocks. These rockslides are triggered during rainy seasons when the soil becomes saturated with water, causing rock slips, or when water moves through cracks and fissures between rocks, leading to collapses.
Statistics and Solutions
" Barran Press," using open sources, recorded 19 rockslide incidents between May and November 2024 across nine governorates: Taiz, Lahij, Ibb, Hadhramaut, Sana'a, Al-Mahwit, Al-Dhale, Amran, and Hajjah. These incidents resulted in 10 deaths, 7 injuries, and damage to homes and public properties.
To prevent such tragic incidents, Engineer Abbas emphasized the need for field survey studies in all districts of Al-Mahwit and other governorates by local authorities, to prioritize handling such rocks using specific professional methods.
Based on the survey results, these rocks should be managed "either by blasting the rocks after evacuating the villages beneath them or supporting the rocks with structures determined by engineering teams to prevent future slips," according to the engineer.
Stalled Project
In 2012, the Yemeni government directed the creation of a project to produce a risk map for Yemen's rock cover, managed by the Geological Survey and Mineral Resources Authority under the Ministry of Oil and Minerals. The project aimed to study similar areas and assess their stability. The government also called for establishing a financial fund to mitigate the risks and damage of rockslides in populated areas and implement proposed solutions based on the project's reports, following scientific standards.
At the time, Dr. Adnan Barahim, a professor of engineering geology at Sana'a University and deputy director of the Rock Cover Risk Map Production Project, said studies covering over 400 rocky sites in Yemen revealed that annual human fatalities due to rockslides ranged from 2 to 60.
In a statement quoted by Al Jazeera, Barahim explained that recorded rockslides included planar and rotational slips, toppling, and rockfall, noting that material losses from homes, roads, agricultural terraces, and water and electricity extensions exceeded one billion riyals annually.
Since the Houthi group's classified terrorist takeover of the capital, Sana'a, in late 2014, all government institutions have ceased functioning, halting all government projects and measures to address and mitigate such risks.
Summary of Rockslide Incidents Monitored by "Barran Press"
May 10: A major rockslide in Aqaba Al-Mansoura between Al-Wazi’iyah District in Taiz and Al-Madharibah District in Lahj led to a complete closure of the main road.
May 14: A rockslide in Rasd Yafea District, Lahij, caused by heavy rains, resulted in the main road being cut off, isolating the district center from surrounding areas.
May 30: A rockslide in the "Al-Anasyeen" area of Dhi As-Sufal District, south of Ibb Governorate, due to heavy rains.
June 4: Rock and soil slides in Dhi As-Sufal, Al-Udayn, and Mudhaykhirah Districts in Ibb Governorate caused by heavy rains.
June 12: Rockslides in the mountains of Hasn Basem village overlooking a residential area in Wadi Doan District, Hadhramaut, forced residents to leave their homes.
July 16: Renewed rockslides in the mountains of Hasn Basem village in Wadi Doan District, Hadhramaut.
July 29: A rockslide in Al-Khashabi village in the "Al-Manar" area of Ba'dan District, east of Ibb Governorate, demolished a home and injured three people.
August 8: Rockslides in the mountains of Faj Attan in Hadda, south of the capital Sana’a, caused damage to nearby buildings and partial road closure due to rock debris.
August 21: Rockslides on Madara Road in Bani Al-Khayat, Al-Tawila District, Al-Mahwit Governorate, cut off the road.
August 21: Rockslides in Shar village, rural Ibb, caused by heavy rains, cut off the main village road.
August 22: Rockslides on the eastern ring road in Al-Mahwit City caused road closures and the collapse of some old traditional homes.
August 22: A rockslide caused by heavy rains claimed the life of a citizen and injured his son in one of the areas of Al-Hasha District, Al-Dhale Governorate.
August 25: A rockslide caused by heavy rains in Naqil Gholat Ajeeb, Raydah District, Amran Governorate, led to the closure of the Sana’a-Sa’ada road.
August 25: Rockslides in Naqil Sumara cut off the road linking Sana’a, Ibb, and Taiz.
September 2: A citizen died in a rockslide in the "Amras" area of Qa'atabah District, Al-Dhale Governorate.
September 3: A rockslide in Al-Mahjar village in the Ahjur area of Shibam Kawkaban District, Al-Mahwit Governorate, destroyed several homes and caused significant material damage.
September 5: A rockslide on a mountain road linking the towns and areas of Yafea, Lahj Governorate, coincided with passing vehicles, causing road closure.
October 17: A citizen died, and another was injured in a rockslide in Adeenah, Jabal Habashy District, Taiz.
November 11: A rockslide in Bani Al-Khayat, Al-Mahwit Governorate, claimed the lives of seven family members and injured three others.