August 2008 fatal landslide map

Better late than never (just a tad busy at the moment...), here is the fatal landslide map for August 2008. First the statistics:
Number of recorded fatal landslides: 61
Number of recorded fatalities: 537

As such August was substantially above the average for the last five years (212 fatalities). This is interesting as regular readers will know that until the end of July most months have been substantially below the five year average. July was particularly low. Therefore, this sudden increase in activity in August is slightly surprising and will be worthy of detailed analysis in due course.

So, first the map for August 2008. As ever, you will need to click on the map to get a decent view of it:

A few things to note:

1. The very strong cluster along the Himalayan Arc is now very evident. Nepal in particular is suffering an intense period of landslides.
2. There is also a clear cluster in the Caribbean as the Hurricane season starts to take its toll.
3. China is also experiencing a few events, but with no clear pattern.

The map of the year to date is shown below. Again, click on the map for a decent view. The normal clusters are now well developed. Compare this map with that from 2007 (see here). The similarity between the two patterns is now very clear.

I welcome any comments, corrections and clarifications.