Olivier Dewitte
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View article: Spatio-temporal characterization of flash floods in small data-scarce watersheds of the tropical Kigezi highlands, southwestern Uganda
Spatio-temporal characterization of flash floods in small data-scarce watersheds of the tropical Kigezi highlands, southwestern Uganda Open
Flash floods are widespread natural hazards, yet detailed field-based studies remain limited, especially in tropical regions where data on their occurrence and climate knowledge are scarce. Here, we characterize flash floods across eight s…
View article: Capturing the complete landslide–debris-rich flood continuum for accurate inventory, susceptibility and exposure mapping – lessons from Cyclone Idai
Capturing the complete landslide–debris-rich flood continuum for accurate inventory, susceptibility and exposure mapping – lessons from Cyclone Idai Open
In mountainous regions, intense rainfall can trigger thousands of landslides within hours. The drivers that control the occurrence of such landslides, and the methods for predicting the zones susceptible to their initiation have been exten…
View article: Mapping urban gullies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Mapping urban gullies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Open
Large urban gullies cause damage in many tropical cities across the Global South 1,2 . They can result from inappropriate urban planning and insufficient infrastructure to safely store and evacuate rainfall in environments that are already…
View article: Exposure to Large Landslides in Cities Outpaces Urban Growth
Exposure to Large Landslides in Cities Outpaces Urban Growth Open
The world's rapidly growing urban population is forcing cities to expand into steeper terrain, increasing the risk of landslides. However, systemic assessments of urban landslide exposure are limited. Across 129 cities and their surroundin…
View article: Geological and Geomorphological Controls on Landslides: North Tanganyika-Kivu Rift Region, Tropical Africa
Geological and Geomorphological Controls on Landslides: North Tanganyika-Kivu Rift Region, Tropical Africa Open
Landslides are geohydrological hazards that shape landscapes and may cause disasters. Despite their impact, the geological and geomorphological factors controlling their occurrence are not always well understood. This is especially so in m…
View article: Comment on egusphere-2024-2977 - third referee report
Comment on egusphere-2024-2977 - third referee report Open
View article: Comment on egusphere-2024-3445
Comment on egusphere-2024-3445 Open
View article: Historicizing Natural Hazards and Human-Induced Landscape Transformation in a Tropical Mountainous Environment in Africa: Narratives from Elderly Citizens
Historicizing Natural Hazards and Human-Induced Landscape Transformation in a Tropical Mountainous Environment in Africa: Narratives from Elderly Citizens Open
Studying natural hazards in the context of human-induced landscape transformation is complex, especially in regions with limited information. The narratives of the elderly can play a role in filling these knowledge gaps at the multi-decada…
View article: Historicizing Natural Hazards and Human-Induced Landscape Transformation in a Tropical Mountainous Environment in Africa: Narratives from Elderly Citizens
Historicizing Natural Hazards and Human-Induced Landscape Transformation in a Tropical Mountainous Environment in Africa: Narratives from Elderly Citizens Open
Studying natural hazards in the context of human-induced landscape transformation is complex, especially in regions with limited information. Elderly narratives can play a role in filling these knowledge gaps at the multi-decadal timescale…
View article: The potential of runoff retention structures as a strategy to control urban gullying in tropical cities
The potential of runoff retention structures as a strategy to control urban gullying in tropical cities Open
Rapid and chaotic urbanization leads to the formation of urban gullies in many tropical cities of the Global South. To prevent and limit the destructive impacts of these gullies, runoff retention structures are often constructed. Yet, earl…
View article: Human Settlement Pressure Drives Slow‐Moving Landslide Exposure
Human Settlement Pressure Drives Slow‐Moving Landslide Exposure Open
A rapidly growing population across mountain regions is pressuring expansion onto steeper slopes, leading to increased exposure of people and their assets to slow‐moving landslides. These moving hillslopes can inflict damage to buildings a…
View article: What controls the expansion of urban gullies in tropical environments? Lessons learned from contrasting cities in D.R. Congo
What controls the expansion of urban gullies in tropical environments? Lessons learned from contrasting cities in D.R. Congo Open
View article: Human settlement pressure drives slow-moving landslide exposure
Human settlement pressure drives slow-moving landslide exposure Open
The rapidly growing population in many mountain regions is pressuring expansion onto steeper slopes, increasingly exposing people and their assets to slow-moving landslides [1, 2, 3, 4]. These moving hillslopes can inflict damage to buildi…
View article: Mobilization rates of landslides in a changing tropical environment: 60-year record over a large region of the East African Rift
Mobilization rates of landslides in a changing tropical environment: 60-year record over a large region of the East African Rift Open
View article: Assessing scale reliability in citizen science motivational research: lessons learned from two case studies in Uganda
Assessing scale reliability in citizen science motivational research: lessons learned from two case studies in Uganda Open
View article: Living with landslides: Land use on unstable hillslopes in a rural tropical mountainous environment in DR Congo
Living with landslides: Land use on unstable hillslopes in a rural tropical mountainous environment in DR Congo Open
View article: Combining radar and optical satellite data to gather a comprehensive regional-scale dataset of the activity of slow-moving landslides in diverse tropical landscapes
Combining radar and optical satellite data to gather a comprehensive regional-scale dataset of the activity of slow-moving landslides in diverse tropical landscapes Open
Slow-moving landslides (SML; mm year−1 to 100 m year−1) can be a ubiquitous geomorphic process in tropical mountain landscapes. Yet, answer to crucial questions such as what landscape characteristics exert the most important co…
View article: Digitising, pre-processing and photogrammetric processing of historical aerial photographs for the production of high resolution orthomosaics and the study of geohazards
Digitising, pre-processing and photogrammetric processing of historical aerial photographs for the production of high resolution orthomosaics and the study of geohazards Open
The acquisition of aerial photographs for cartographic applications started in the 1930s, and more intensively after World War II. Such old, often panchromatic, imagery offers metre to sub-metre scale spatial resolution over landscapes tha…
View article: A semi-automatic natural language tool to minimize systematic biases in geo-hydrological disaster datasets in tropical Africa
A semi-automatic natural language tool to minimize systematic biases in geo-hydrological disaster datasets in tropical Africa Open
The high susceptibility to geo-hydrological hazards in tropical Africa and their impacts remain poorly documented in existing disaster databases. Only impactful events with high attention are manually reported, creating systematic biases. …
View article: Raising awareness to geo-hydrological hazard risks in African countries: A guide booklet for stakeholders, policy markers and the public at large
Raising awareness to geo-hydrological hazard risks in African countries: A guide booklet for stakeholders, policy markers and the public at large Open
Many regions of Africa are exposed to a large variety of geo-hydrological hazards such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, floods, karst collapses and large urban gullies. Despite the soaring impacts on population, infrastructu…
View article: Data rescue of millions of daily precipitation and temperature records collected within the Congo Basin
Data rescue of millions of daily precipitation and temperature records collected within the Congo Basin Open
Local and distant archives of observed weather data present unique opportunities for scientists to obtain long time series of the historical hydrology and climate for many regions of the world. Unfortunately, most of these observational re…
View article: Landslides, bedrock incision and human-induced environmental changes in an extremely rapidly formed tropical river gorge
Landslides, bedrock incision and human-induced environmental changes in an extremely rapidly formed tropical river gorge Open
View article: Geo-Hydrological Hazard Impacts, Vulnerability and Perception in Bujumbura (Burundi): A High-Resolution Field-Based Assessment in a Sprawling City
Geo-Hydrological Hazard Impacts, Vulnerability and Perception in Bujumbura (Burundi): A High-Resolution Field-Based Assessment in a Sprawling City Open
Rapid urbanization, demographic pressure, and sprawl of cities are key factors in the vulnerability and damage related to geo-hydrological hazards. Dysfunctional urban services that favor informal settlements are at the forefront of elemen…
View article: Life cycle of gullies: A susceptibility assessment in the Southern Main Ethiopian Rift
Life cycle of gullies: A susceptibility assessment in the Southern Main Ethiopian Rift Open
Gullies experience varying states of activity during their life cycle. For example, their highest growth rates are commonly observed in the period that follows their initiation, whereas they are less active when reaching stability. Underst…
View article: Vulnerability of key urban infrastructures to geo-hydrological hazards: how endangered is the city of Bujumbura?
Vulnerability of key urban infrastructures to geo-hydrological hazards: how endangered is the city of Bujumbura? Open
In urban areas, networks and life-support systems, such as roads, power lines and drinking water pipes, are key infrastructures which contribute to the functioning of the city. Their damaging or destruction can lead to harmful consequences…
View article: Operational assessment of landslide risks in the sprawling city of Bukavu (DR Congo)
Operational assessment of landslide risks in the sprawling city of Bukavu (DR Congo) Open
The expansion of informal and uncontrolled urban landscapes commonly overlooks the natural constraints from the environment. This is particularly true for urban environments affected by landslides. Landslide risk assessment relevant for ur…
View article: Regional Detection of Landslide and Flash Flood Events in the East African Rift
Regional Detection of Landslide and Flash Flood Events in the East African Rift Open
Satellite remote sensing is frequently used for spatial and temporal detection of geomorphic hazards (GH) such as landslides and flash floods. Establishing regional-scale inventories of GH events is crucial to understanding their behavior …
View article: Potential effect of agricultural terraces on landslide occurrence: the tropical mountains of Rwanda
Potential effect of agricultural terraces on landslide occurrence: the tropical mountains of Rwanda Open
The tropical mountainous environments of the Northern-western provinces of Rwanda in Africa are often referred to as the breadbasket of the country and are also densely populated. This high demographic pressure is associated with significa…
View article: A step towards unravelling dynamics and connectivity of slow-moving landslides in changing tropical landscapes
A step towards unravelling dynamics and connectivity of slow-moving landslides in changing tropical landscapes Open
Human activities transform Earth's ecosystems and landscapes at unprecedented rates and scales. Land use changes are particularly drastic in economically developing countries of the tropics, where major demographic and economic shifts are …
View article: Assessing urban gully occurrence at the scale of Africa
Assessing urban gully occurrence at the scale of Africa Open
The rapid and typically uncontrolled growth of many African cities leads to a plethora of problems and challenges. One of these is the formation and expansion of large urban gullies (UGs) in many (sub)tropical cities. UGs typically lead to…