Mineração Morro do Ipê (MMI) has installed 19 HÖRMANN Warnsysteme electronic sirens as an automated warning system for communities in the tailings dam impact zone. The sirens are linked to dam monitoring sensors and are configured to trigger automatically in the event of a breach, removing reliance on manual activation during fast‑developing failures. For geotechnical and emergency planners, the project illustrates integration of real‑time instrumentation with public alerting infrastructure as part of Brazilian post‑Brumadinho tailings risk management practice.

Rainfall-triggered rockfall on Highway 18 in San Bernardino County has blocked lanes and damaged barriers along a steep cut slope, following weeks of intense winter storms that saturated highly fractured granitic and metamorphic rock. Caltrans geotechnical crews report multiple failures from tension cracks and oversteepened slopes above the roadway, with debris reaching the carriageway and impacting existing rockfall fences. Engineers are now assessing options including expanded rock bolting, additional draped mesh, improved surface and subsurface drainage, and revised slope scaling protocols ahead of further atmospheric river events.

Lineside monitoring systems on parts of Britain’s rail network may fail to detect embankment or cutting slope movements during extreme rainfall, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch has warned following the 3 November passenger train derailment near Shap, Cumbria. The warning concerns remote condition monitoring equipment installed to trigger alerts for ground instability, which did not prevent the derailment. Geotechnical and asset engineers are being urged to review sensor siting, trigger thresholds and system performance in severe weather, particularly on high-risk slopes.