Investigation of a landslide in Maskinonge, Quebec

Several first-time landslides occurred in the Maskinonge area, Quebec, duri ng the summer, which is rather unusual. They have been studied in detail, i ncluding a site investigation. The results show the following: (i) piezocon e tests indicate that the clay mass close to the slopes of precarious stabi lity is softened; (ii) the failure surface develops within the softened zon e; and (iii) three of the four landslides occurred during the summer period when pore pressures are low, indicating that failure could be due to fatig ue phenomena.