Whatever the cause, the event resulted in a massive rockfall which has blocked the nearby Bureya river, and left several villages at risk of flooding. So much rock was shifted it would fill 13,600 Olympic-sized swimming pools, say experts. Meanwhile, the falling 34 million cubic metres of debris left a gash in a mountain which could swallow up all the water used if every American showered at the same time.
The Russian army has been dispatched to the scene to try and find out what caused the catastrophic event and move a 525ft-high mound of rock, which has substantially blocked the Bureya, with village in the Khabarovsk and Amur regions at risk of flooding.
The military has being tasked with “moving the mountain”, using explosives and equipment to allow the water to flow again.
But experts have warned nearby rock is fractured and a second gargantuan landslide is not ruled out.
A defence ministry source said a group of specialists is en route “to conduct reconnaissance work” at the site, where the rocks fell some 1,280 ft on to the valley floor.
There have been claims the mountain collapse was the result of a UFO crash-landing (Image: GETTY)
The source added: “Given the significant size of the landslide, units of engineers and railway forces with special equipment, as well as army and transport aviation, will be involved in clearing the rock.”
Plans are being drawn up for the evacuation of 400 people from the villages of Chekunda, Ust-Urgal and Elga .
Flooding could also disrupt the 2,700-mile long Baikal-Amur Mainline rail link, which is a vital link between the Siberian interior and Russia’s east coast, unless the army can unblock the river quickly.
To complicate matters still further, a hydro-electricity station is also threatened because water is drying up in Bureyskaya hydro power reservoir located downstream.
The mountain collapse happened in a region of eastern Siberia (Image: Google)
The collapse has blocked the Bureya river (Image: Google)
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