Largest landslide in New York history creeps down Adirondacks

Zach Howard Reuters 07/01/2011 19:13

A mile-wide landslide that is unleashing hundreds of millions of tons of debris in New York's Adirondack Mountains is the largest in the state's history, but also one of its slowest.

Geologists say an 82-acre piece of earth on Little Porter Mountain in Keene Valley, New York, is creeping downhill at a rate of between just six inches and two feet per day, dragging boulders, trees and house foundations along with it.

Andrew Kozlowski, associate state geologist at the New York State Museum, said the uncommonly lazy slide was triggered by excessive groundwater from this year's heavy snows and rain.

The slide began May 6 and could last considerably longer, from a few months to many years, he said.

"That's the side of a mountain that's in full motion right now," Kozlowski said. "This thing isn't even close to being at equilibrium yet. There's every indication that this is going to continue to move for some time."

The landslide's mass is at least hundreds of millions of tons, he said. Measuring 0.8 of a mile wide, it is the largest landslide in New York history, he said.

One home has been destroyed and at least five others sit precariously near the slide's edge, which overhangs a 30-foot drop in some places.