Drone footage shows massive landslides after quakes
Digital Reporter
Monday, April 18, 2016, 10:00 AM - Japan and Ecuador were both rocked by powerful earthquakes in the last week, with hundreds of people losing their lives in the disasters.
Ecuador was the hardest hit, with a Magnitude 7.8 tremor that caused widespread infrastructure damage and at least 350 deaths.
Back-to-back quakes hit Japan's Kyushu Island within two days of each other late last week, killing some 42 people. The BBC reports that some 250,000 people have been told to stay out of their homes for fear of aftershocks.
The video above was one of several released by Japan's Geospatial Information Authority to survey damage from landslides triggered by the quake. The one below shows just how far landslides can travel from their point of origin if the quake is strong enough and the terrain allows it.
The large quake in Ecuador on Saturday also triggered landslides, likewise cutting off highway access in some parts of the country, hindering search and rescue efforts.
Both Ecuador and Japan are earthquake prone countries, but the one that struck the Andean nation over the weekend was stronger than the Japanese tremors, and it struck a country where infrastructure is not as advanced, leading to major structural damage.
This drone video captures the aftermath of the collapse of a raised highway in the port city of Guayaquil:
