GRANDE DEL NEVADO

 

Event description

 

The flood of 10 January 1934 had a peakdischarge of 3`200 m³/s and destroyed bridges and 12.6 km of railroad along R�o Mendoza. Inspection of the site showed that Glaciar del Nevado had advanced 900 m since its last inspection, 22 years before. It had produced a lake 3 km long, with a maximum depth of 75 m and a volume of 60 Mio m³. Clean white ice overthrusted the old moraine. The duration of the advance was unknown and controversial (Espiz�a, 1986).

 

Damage

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The flood provoked several casualties and a great economic loss, including the destruction of a small village, a Hotel by the river and several km of railways and bridges in the main international route between Mendoza and Chile.

 

Data source

 

Leiva, J. C. (1999): Recent fluctuations of the Argentinian glaciers. Global and Planetary Change, 22, 169 � 177.

 

Remarks

 

The return of the surge appeared to be about 50 years.