Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019

Landslides ‘Geo’-Hazard, ‘Natural’ Disasters & Mitigation

The Sentani March 2019 Debris Flow Case Study

Geoffrey de Jong1, Apolo Safanpo2, Jonathan K Wororomi3 and John J Numberi4

1 Dr. Contract Foreign Sr. Lecture UNCEN - geoffreydejong@gmail.com
2 Dr. Ir. Rector UNCEN
3 Dr. Pembantu Rector III – UNCEN Faculty Mathematics and Natural Science
4 Dr. Dean – UNCEN Faculty of Engineering

Abstract

Three main landslides (and a dozen smaller ones) trigged by torrential rainfall on the night of March 16,
2019 caused in the Sentani region (Papua, Indonesia) numerous fatalities, injuries, destruction of
homes, infrastructures and the displacement of hundreds of people. The landslides are classified as
typical ‘debris flows’ with rapid flow of meter-scale boulder size gneissic rocks (Kelompok Melihan
Cycloops formation), soil and meters long tree stumps down pre-existing ‘localized’ channels on the
southern slope of the Cyclops Mountain range. The three main debris flows (responsible for most of the
damage) caused at the toe region of the lower mountain slopes lateral erosion of the channels
(estimated locally 3-5x the original width) and reached a debris height of locally over 3m high (during
the peak of the event); with the destruction of two bridges. Rainfall was the main trigger for the Sentani
March 16 landslides with over 150mm of rain in 4 hours on that evening. Rainfall continued for 5 nights
averaging 10cm per night; while usual rainfall for March in the region historically has been 1cm per
night. Technical solutions proposed to mitigate future debris flows in the Sentani region is to install
above the mountain toe region catch nets in two main channels (that carried the debris flows) and
smaller open-pillar slit check dams; this to reduce down flow of sediments and reduce the energy/force
of the torrent.

Keywords: landslides, debris flows, mitigation, Papua, Sentani

Introduction of the slide, and (iii) the dominant material

Landslides are common erosion
phenomena in mountainous terrains. It is
the geological morphological mechanical
part of denudation in a mountain erosion
process. Landslides are well studied and
described in the literature. Landslides are
classified on their (i) sliding mechanism, (ii)
their flow energy, the speed of movement
of sliding (figure 1). Reason for the
abundant research on landslides is their
destructive nature; when interfering with
human activities. Landslides have
damaged roads, railways, tunnels, bridges,
electrical and water infrastructures, etc.
More pressing is the demolishing of
properties like homes, farm land and the
human suffering (fatalities, injuries).
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019

Figure 1. Classification of common landslides. The Sentani landslides are typical debris flows.

increase (Indonesian population in 2019 is

Landslides and earthquakes are the
two frequent geological processes affecting
Papua in a ‘geo-hazardous’ manner (less
common tsunamis). These geological
processes are only becoming a ‘geo-
hazards’ when these processes
(landslides, earthquakes & tsunamis) are
interacting with human activities (figure 2).
Due to the continuous human population
~270 million, projected to ~366 million in
2050 according United Nation data), more
people are living in geo-hazard prone areas
like (i) coastal areas (flooding, tsunamis,
hurricanes, storms), (ii) floodplains
(flooding, landslides, earthquakes,
liquefaction) and (iii) mountain slopes
(volcanic, landslides).

Figure 2. Diagram showing the interactions between geo-processes and human activities which can
lead a geo-hazard condition to become a possible disaster.

exceed the ability of the affected society to

An event (like e.g. torrential rainfall)
can trigger a geo-hazardous condition to
turn into a disaster. ‘A disaster is a serious
disruption in the functioning of a
(vulnerable) community or a society
causing wide spread material, economic,
social or environmental losses which
cope using its own resources’ (after UN
definition). The magnitude or scale of a
disaster is generally dependent on the
intensity, duration & extent of the geo-
hazard, the response time (of the relieve
work) and the vulnerability of the
population, infrastructure & properties.

Geo Hazard x Population Vulnerability = Disaster Magnitude

Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019

floodplains of the 200km2 ESE-WNW

Sentani Setting (Geo-Morphological) trending Cyclops Mountain Range (figure
3). The highest point (Gunung Ifar 2160m)
The Sentani town and surroundings lies ~6km north of Sentani (~7km from the
are situated on the toe regions and Sentani airport).

Figure 3. Google Earth 3D perspective image, looking NE, showing the Sentani urbanization at the
foot-hills of the Cyclops Mountains. Three debris flows (white numbers indicate apex region) caused
destruction in the toe and floodplain regions. Yellow numbers indicate location of photos in the text.
Smaller landslides affected Doyo (bottom left side image).

anticlinal deformed Cyclops Metamorphic

The morphology of the ESE-WNW
trending Cyclops Mountain north of Sentani
show from north to south ‘flat’ (~15°-20°)
south dipping slopes grading into steep
(~35°-45°) south dipping slopes followed
by gentle sloping (<10°) toe- and floodplain
regions. Three south inclined deeply
eroded gorges, with the apex at the ridge
line, transect the mountain range north of
Sentani.
The transition in slope steepness
coincides with a south dipping major thrust
fault and a change in lithology. The core of
the mountain range consists of the
Group formation that is composed of
gneiss and amphibolite to greenschist
metamorphic facies lithologies. The
metamorphism and anticlinal deformation
was caused by the obduction of an
ophiolite during the Tertiary Miocene period
~20Ma ago. The slice of ophiolite series
that is thrusted, superimposed on top of the
metamorphic core is composed of a 10km-
thick ultramafic unit (harzburgites and
dunites) and a 5km-thick crustal unit made
of gabbros (layered and isotropic), dolerites
(massive and sheeted) and lavas (Monnier
et. al. 1999; figure 4).
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019

Figure 4. Upper image showing the geology map of the Cyclops Mountain and Sentani-Jayapura
region. Lower image showing section looking NW. After Monnier et. al. 1999.

freshly eroded soils and (3) freshly broken

Sentani Landslides
Location
The landslides that affected Sentani
are classical ‘debris flows’. The landsides
originated in three gorges north of Sentani
were rainwater and surface run-off waters
filled up the gorges in the upper region,
causing fluidizing and transporting of (1)
earlier dislodged boulders / cobbles/ sand
that was already present in the gorges, (2)
off tree stumps from the gorge slope sides.
The debris stayed contained in the original
gorge / channel; creating a high energy
debris in rapidly flowing torrents (figure 3 –
gorge / debris flows 1, 2, 3). Only sub-
rounded boulder/cobble in the lower slope,
toe and floodplain regions were observed.
This could indicate that no fresh bed rock
was eroded/dislodge from the (upper)
channel base and slope banks. About 99%
of the lithology consisted of the gneiss
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019
rocks of the Cyclops Metamorphic Group;
locally some Ophiolite Series gabbro rock
was noted. The boulders are (at least in the
toe- and floodplain regions) generally
uniform and symmetrical sub-rectangular
blocks of ~1m long by ~0.5m wide by
~0.6m high (with an estimated weight of a
boulder around ~800kg to ~1ton). This
rectangular shape reflects three (sub)
orthogonal joint sets that are dominant in
the Cyclops Metamorphic Group gneissic
lithology. The maximum joint spacing gives
some indication on possible minimum
length for bolts and anchors needed for
geotechnical mitigation measures.
Figure 5. Left showing image of ‘debris flow 1’ with in the toe region fanning out. Right showing
diagram gorge and toe region with low and high water situation. Yellow #1 in fig. 3.
Debris flow 2 split just above the toe
region, at the upper section of illegal
farmland (gardens), in a (i) N-S channel
caused by overflowing of the (ii) original
NW-SE trending channel. The main energy
of the torrent was contained in the lower
slope toe region in the NW-SE trending
original straight low angle channel and
flood plain (figure 6a – photo location 1 fig
3). Abundant boulders were deposited
contained in the original flood plain of the
toe region due to the decrease in energy
due to the swallowing of the slope angle.
However houses build on the floodplain
and a bridge were destroyed by the
boulders (figure 6a – photo location 2 fig 3).
The landslide changed its character from a
debris flow to a flooding. In the lower part
of the toe region the cobbles, sand and
waters from ‘debris’ flow 2 merged with
Debris description
Debris flow 1 was formed by three
‘small' rock/debris fall in the upper part of
steep gorges. Once debris flow 1 reached
the toe region, it split into various smaller
creeks, dissipating the energy. The flow
was contained in the original channel and
floodplain; and depositing of boulders
occurred in the toe region with little to minor
damage to infrastructures (figure 5). Finer
material like cobbles and sand was washed
down the original channels. Sedimentation,
hence position of deposited boulder to
sand/silt size debris material is a function of
the energy of the torrent.
waters from ‘debris’ flow 1, creating a
massive flow of high energy water
damaging and destroying houses build on
the flood plain north of the HIS high school
(figure 6b – photo location 3 fig 3). Hence,
the houses were flooded / damaged /
destroyed by water, not boulders. Houses
downstream were flooded, invaded, by
water and mud.
The N-S flowing torrent contained
excess waters (from the main NW-SE
channel) with only minor boulders but
abundant soil, sand and cobbles. The slope
south, beneath the gardens steepens
causing an increase in energy of the debris
into the Jl. Sosial suburb, damaging and
destroying homes and caused flood
damage down slope southward to the main
road.
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019
Figure 6a. Debris flow 2 looking NW.
Approximate extent of the m-scale boulders in
the straight NW-SE trending channel. Note
homes destroyed on the floodplains. Lateral
erosion by ~4x the original channel width. Yellow
#2 in fig. 3.
Debris flow 3 had the longest flow
path (originating furthers north up the
slope) and appears to had the highest
energy of the three debris flow that affected
Sentani. Meter scale boulders deposited all
the way south into the Kimiri suburb
(causing significant damage; figure 7a –
photo location 4 fig 3). Aided by a straight
channel from the middle lower slope
section and toe region into the Kimiri
suburb (figure 7b – photo location 5 fig 3).
Figure 6b. Looking NNW from HIS towards
destroyed / damaged village by flood waters (plus
cobbles; no m-scale boulders) of debris flow 2 and
1. Note the N-S overflow from main debris flow 2,
at the illegal farms, causing flooding at Jl. Sosial.
Yellow #3 in fig. 3.
Eyewitness accounts mention debris
(boulders, tree stumps, mud and water)
reaching 3m high destroying homes, trees
and infrastructures; but also caused
significant erosion of the channel banks.
The deposition of the m-scale boulders was
contained in the original channel-
floodplain. More southward extensive
flooding (water, tree stumps, sand and
mud) caused major damage (figure 7c –
photo location 6 fig 3).
Figure 7a. Looking N. Approximate
southern extent of the m-scale boulders of
debris flow 3; destroyed homes on the
floodplains at Kimiri. Straight channel
running N-S. Yellow #4 in fig. 3.
Figure 7b. Looking S, standing on
destroyed bridge. Straight N-S running
channel into Kimiri (750m south). Note the
recent erosion caused by the debris flow 3.
Photo taken standing on destroyed bridge.
Yellow #5 in fig. 3.
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019

Figure 7c. Looking E. Extensive water

flooding (water and mud fanning out, flowing
over from the main debris flow 3 channel) in
the southern part of Kimiri. Image from
Reuter. Yellow #6 in fig. 3.

150mm in 4 hours); and the flat slopes in

Trigger mechanisms
For a geohazard to become a
disaster a trigger event or events must
happen prior the disaster. Trigger
mechanism for debris flow are (1) rainfall
(intensity and duration) which causes
saturation of soils (increase pore
pressures) and saturation of joint planes
(decrease shear resistance), (2) removal of
vegetation in lower slope, toe region
(decrease in soil compaction strength) and
(3) seismicity (loosening up the ground).
The main trigger for the Sentani
landslides was extreme rainfall (high
intensity rainfall in a short period of time;
the upper region of the mountain. The flat
slopes aided the increasing of the amount
of run-off waters (larger drainage area
compared to only steep slopes) into the
upper parts of the gorges. On the flat upper
sections local natural ponds were formed
that flooded during the extreme rainfall
contributing to the torrent energy in the
gorge. Rainfall continued for 5 nights
averaging 10cm per night; while usual
rainfall for March in the region historically
has been 1cm per night (BPS website
data). Earthquakes mainly occurred a
month prior to the slides, about 45km to the
NW, and appear not to have caused the
landslides (figure 8).

Figure 8. Graph showing rainfall data in the Sentani region from January until March 2019,
earthquake intensity (magnitude number in circles) and disaster dates (red). An earthquake 45km
NW of Sentani happened March 17. Rainfall in Sentani measured successively from March 16 till
March 20 as 15cm 14cm, 10cm, 9.5cm, and 2.5cm (pers. com. Zach Osterloo 2019).

been established. However, less than a

Mitigation Measures
Management Process
A local government ‘Geo-Hazard
Management Mitigation Plan, Process or
Protocol’ for the Sentani region has not yet
month after the Sentani landslides, the
Cenderawasih University took the forefront
in organizing a ‘Focus Discussion Group’
meeting, with the theme ‘Natural Disaster
Management’ (for Jayapura / Papua
region), with local government official,
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019
NGO’s, academics and industry. The
BNPB (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan
Bencana / National Disaster Management
Authority) has set out the ‘Indonesia’s
Disaster Risk Management Baseline
Status Report 2015”, in which strategic
goals has been set to meet to eliminate or
at least reduce the risk of disasters by
natural hazards.
Stabilizing Measures
Mechanical and technical solutions
to mitigate landslides in general are to
increase the shear friction of potential
sliding surfaces. This can be done by (1)
drainage of the slopes, (2) anchors to fix
soils in place, (3) friction bolts in hard rock
to combat raffling and toppling, (4) netting
and grouting to maintain rock and soils in
place, (5) terracing to reduce slope angles
and create bench catchments, (6) retaining
walls to stabilize and strengthen lower
slope regions, and (7) pylons / caissons to
strengthen the overall slope.
These mitigation measures work
well for man engineered slopes and most
natural slow moving landslides (see figure
1), but not for debris flows. Debris flows are
more fluidity landslides with no shear plane
of shear resistance. The energy of debris
flows (the sediments boulders, tree, soil,
etc.) must therefore be contained or
reduced before the energy becomes too
great to control. Typical debris flow
mitigation measures used in Europe
(France, Switzerland, Norway) and Japan
are ‘ring-nets’ and ‘check dams’ (figure 9).
Areas proposed to install these nets and
dams are at the lower steep-toe region in
channels 2 and 3.
Figure 9a. Left image from
Geobrugg showing solid check
dam with three ring-nets. Upper
right sketch of a +15m width
ring-net. Bottom right grid type
check dam.
Figure 9b. Proposed locations
in channel 2 and 3 for (open
type) check-dams and ring
nets. Exact location and
amount of mitigation measures
need first to be confirmed by
site investigations and ground
studies.
Proceeding Seminar Geologi Yogyakarta 2019
Discussion
Monitoring/Early Warning Systems
Typical ground / surface movement
/ displacement monitoring with remote
(ISAR/GPS, SSR, Prisms) or ground
sensors (inclinometers, extensometers,
accelerometer) needs specialized teams
and continues budget to guaranty the
quality. These type of monitoring systems
are more effective for potential landslide
formed by slow moving ground.
Ground/rain water measurements
are more ‘easier’ to measure and
interpreted and can be done as a continues
project by Cenderawasih University
students. Ground- and mainly rainfall
measurements are a ‘better’ monitoring
option for predicting debris flow type of
landslides.
These monitoring systems can be
used as ‘early warning systems’, but only
after a base study has establish the
threshold levels for safe levels of ground
displacement or ground/rainwater/soil-
moister levels – prior disastrous failure.
Educating the Community
Landowners and property
developer should note if urbanization is
planned in a channel-floodplain geo-hazard
risk prone area, and can be educated by
simple cross-sectional diagrams of the
channels. The general public should be
made aware of the risk of living in channel-
floodplain areas by flyers, posters in
schools, malls, mosque and churches and
followed up by regular face-to-face
communication in weeks prior to the expect
high rainfall seasons (a task for
Cenderawasih University students). Risk
and mitigation measures should be
conveyed. Mitigation measures to by done
by the population is like keeping the gutters
/ drain ways clean, not farming and cutting
down trees on the slope and toe regions,
not building dams in upper slope regions
for water-catchment and not damming or
mining sand in the rivers or in the lower
floodplain areas.
Conclusions
The landslides that affected the
Sentani community were typical debris
flows; triggered by torrential intense rainfall
(150mm in 4hr). Two debris flows caused
the most damage. Debris flow 3 had the
most energy with transporting meter-scale
boulder past the toe-region into the
urbanized Kimiri floodplain. Property
damaged and destroyed and fatalities
could have been avoided if homes were not
built in the channel-floodplains.
Debris flow type landslides
contained in the channels 2-3 can be
mitigated at the transition area of steep
slope-to-toe region. Effective technical
mitigation measures are ring-nets and
open-slit check dams. A social mitigation
measure is to educate the population in not
living in channel-floodplains and avoiding
‘gardens/farming’ at the slope-toe region
that could undermine the ground stability.
Acknowledgment
We thank IAGI for accepting this
last minute paper and the Cenderawasih
University for their contribution. The main
author is much obliged to Marcel de Jong
for driving him around by motor to do the
geological site investigation. Also Zach
Osterloo is appreciated for his rainfall data
and comments.
References
Monnier C., Girardeau J., Pubellier
M., Polvfi M., Permana H. and Bellon H.,
1999. Petrology and geochemistry of the
Cyclops ophiolites (Irian Jaya, East
Indonesia): consequences for the
Cenozoic evolution of the north Australian
margin. Mineralogy and Petrology 65:1-28.