Post-wildfire hazards: Toward an understanding of when and how slope failure may occur

Across the western US, severe wildfires fueled by tinder-dry vegetation have already burned more than 3.2 million hectares (8 million acres) -- an area the size of Maryland -- as of the end of October, 2020, and nearly six times that area burned this year in Australia. And even though neither country's worst-ever fire year is not yet over, concerns are already mounting regarding the next hazard these regions will face: dangerous and destructive debris flows.