Soil slips, debris flows, and rainstorms in the Santa Monica Mountains and vicinity, southern California

Abstract

bring most of the colluvial soil of the area to field capacity, and a 0.25 inch per hour intensity apparently represents the minimum rate at which surface infiltration exceeds subsoil drainage for most of the colluvial soils of the area. With radar weather maps showing the distribution of high-intensity rainfall and slope maps showing the distribution of slopes of the most susceptible steepness, the empirical association may provide a means of recognizing areas where the hazard is greatest at any given time during a storm, and warnings to residents could be more specific and reliable.