The Landslide Blog is written by Dave Petley, who is widely recognized as a world leader in the study and management of landslides.
In March 2025, I recorded 37 fatal landslides globally (excluding those triggered by earthquakes), costing 90 lives. The 2004-2016 average number of fatal landslides in March reported by Froude and Petley (2018) was 28.3 landslides, so 2025 is running considerably above the long term mean. However, it is lower that the total recorded for 2024 (49 landslides).
As usual, the best way to present the data is using pentads – five day blocks. Pentad 18 extends to the end of March. This is the cumulative total number of fatal landslides for 2025, with the 2004-2016 average and 2024 plotted for comparison:-
As the data shows, towards the end of the winter, 2025 was plotting above 2024. However, this has now changed, although the difference is small. 2024 was characterised by a marked increase around at pentad 23 (which starts on 21 April), reflecting the start of the rainy season in the key parts of the Northern Hemisphere, so April 2025 will be very interesting. In general, this acceleration in landslide rate does not start until about pentad 30 (which starts on 26 May).
I also recorded one fatal landslide triggered by an earthquake, which occurred in Hutabarat village, North Sumatra, Indonesia, triggered by a M = 5.6 earthquake. Two people were killed. An unknown number of people may also have been killed by landslides in the earthquake and its aftershocks in Myanmar, but this is very uncertain.
Particularly notable in March 2025 has been a series of landslides, alongside flooding, in Ecuador. This has had a high social cost.
As always, I am happy for others to use this fatal landslide data and the figure, but please attribute to me and cite Froude and Petley (2018). Contact me if you want the data for 2004-2016.
Reference
Froude M.J. and Petley D.N. 2018. Global fatal landslide occurrence from 2004 to 2016. Natural Hazards and Earth System Science 18, 2161-2181. https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2161-2018