A Successful Early Warning System for Hydroclimatic Extreme Events: The Case of La Paz City Mega Landslide

Despite the development of adaptation initiatives that are showing to be effective the existent climate change and variability public adaptation policies and strategies are still insufficient due to the severity of observed impacts, particularly those related to extreme events. During the 1990s half of the world’s population lived in cities and the effects of climate change have also started to become apparent; as a result, large numbers of people are exposed to climate change, variability and extremes effects in urban areas. Cities are periodically affected by climate extreme events that are likely increasing in intensity and/or frequency. This chapter shows some results of risk factors research, an example of a successful implemented adaptation measure based on an early warning system (EWS), and vulnerability, hazard and risk maps developed after the occurrence of a deadly landslide in February 2002 in La Paz city, Bolivia. A “mega-landslide” occurred on February 2011 which activated the EWS immediately after the first cracks were detected in 26.4% of La Paz area, followed by a massive evacuation of people at risk which prevented the loss of human lives. This successful EWS and mapping experience showed to be an effective adaptation measure for cities exposed to increasing hydro-climatic extreme events. Finally, the authors present a list of updated adaptation measures to further reduce harms and losses.