Landslide early warning system for Bangladesh

DHAKA: A new system that can warn people of landslides nearly a week in advance is set to be launched in Bangladesh later this year, helping tackle increasing risks from a disaster linked to climate-change-driven extreme rainfall, experts said on Tuesday. Developed by the United Nations and Bangladesh’s environment ministry, the warning system uses satellite imagery, rainfall measurements and other meteorological data to predict landslides in vulnerable regions. Right now, landslide alerts are provided more informally, based on rain-gauge readings, which amounts to “now-casting, not forecasting” and doesn’t take into account geological data, said a UN Food and Agriculture Organization spokesman.