North Cliff Failure: Warning & Discussion

[Andre]

Apparantly we have missed this event some weeks ago.



Careful when walking on cliffs. (Look at the right top at 10 seconds.)

Looking forward to comments from geologists.

 

[Evo]

I saw it when it first came out.

 

[Astronuc]

From the video - "The failure occurred at about 5pm on Friday 23rd September 2011. It took place on the North Coast of Cornwall."

One should always be careful approaching the edge of cliff, and depending on the geology (e.g., sandstone) and weather (following heavy rain), it's best to stay well away from some areas.

 

[NileQueen]

Dramatic mass wasting. What is the geology of that area?

 

[Astronuc]

The site is apparently North Cliffs near Hayle, Cornwall. The geology in the area seems mostly sandstone and shale on or adjacent to granite.

Hayle cliff fall 'could happen again' experts warn
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-15246855

The collapse was recorded by geologist Richard Hocking - a soils and materials engineer for Cornwall Council.

More cracks have appeared along the cliff top, prompting fears of another collapse.
. . . .
The collapse of the cliff is thought to have been caused by a deep-seated inclined fault plane on which the rock mass slid.

Cornwall can really be imagined as a finger of 400 million year old Devonian slates along with Carboniferous sandstones and shales pointing across the Atlantic Ocean towards the USA, with a backbone of granite. . . . .

http://www.cornwallinfocus.co.uk/geography/geology.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geology_of_Cornwall
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornwall#Physical_geography
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devon#Geography_and_geology


Report on the geology of Cornwall, Devon and west Somerset By Henry Thomas De La Beche, 1839
http://books.google.com/books?id=YwC0A9Tv1KAC&lpg=PAi&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=false

Geology near Penzance - http://www.pznow.co.uk/geology/geology.htm

West Penwith geology - http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/geomincentre/05West Penwith.pdf

http://www.cornwall-online.co.uk/penwith/hayle.htm