Magnitude-distance relations for earthquake-induced landslides in Greece

A data set of 47 earthquake-induced landslides occurring in Greece from AD 1650 to 1995 has been compiled, and the landslide distribution has been examined. The spatial distribution indicates landslides occurrence almost everywhere in Greece with the exception of the north Greek mainland, which is likely due to the low occurrence frequency of large earthquakes. The earthquake magnitude, M-S, ranges between 5.3 and 7.9. while the main bulk of events falls within the range 7.52 greater than or equal toM(S)greater than or equal to5.3 with peaks at M-S=6.4 and 6.7. The upper bound of the maximum epicentral distance, R-e, from a reported landslide has been approximated by the line log(R-e)=-2.98+0.75M(S) for M(S)greater than or equal to5.3, which is compatible with curves proposed world-wide and constitutes a realistic solution at least for hazard assessment purposes. We discuss the importance of the results for assessing hazards from earthquake-induced landslides and for calculating focal parameters of historical earthquakes. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.