Cascading hazards of a major Bengal basin earthquake and abrupt avulsion of the Ganges River

Elizabeth L. Chamberlain (), Steven L. Goodbred (), Michael S. Steckler, Jakob Wallinga, Tony Reimann, Syed Humayun Akhter, Rachel Bain, Golam Muktadir, Abdullah Al Nahian, F. M. Arifur Rahman, Mahfuzur Rahman, Leonardo Seeber and Christoph von Hagke
Additional contact information
Elizabeth L. Chamberlain: Wageningen University
Steven L. Goodbred: Vanderbilt University
Michael S. Steckler: Columbia University
Jakob Wallinga: Wageningen University
Tony Reimann: University of Cologne
Syed Humayun Akhter: University of Dhaka
Rachel Bain: Vanderbilt University
Golam Muktadir: Bangladesh University of Professionals
Abdullah Al Nahian: University of Dhaka
F. M. Arifur Rahman: University of Dhaka
Mahfuzur Rahman: University of Dhaka
Leonardo Seeber: Columbia University
Christoph von Hagke: University of Salzburg

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Earthquakes present severe hazards for people and economies and can be primary drivers of landscape change yet their impact to river-channel networks remains poorly known. Here we show evidence for an abrupt earthquake-triggered avulsion of the Ganges River at ~2.5 ka leading to relocation of the mainstem channel belt in the Bengal delta. This is recorded in freshly discovered sedimentary archives of an immense relict channel and a paleo-earthquake of sufficient magnitude to cause major liquefaction and generate large, decimeter-scale sand dikes >180 km from the nearest seismogenic source region. Precise luminescence ages of channel sand, channel fill, and breached and partially liquefied floodplain deposits support coeval timing of the avulsion and earthquake. Evidence for reorganization of the river-channel network in the world’s largest delta broadens the risk posed by seismic events in the region and their recognition as geomorphic agents in this and other tectonically active lowlands. The recurrence of comparable earthquake-triggered ground liquefaction and a channel avulsion would be catastrophic for any of the heavily populated, large river basins and deltas along the Himalayan arc (e.g., Indus, Ganges, Brahmaputra, Ayeyarwady). The compounding effects of climate change and human impacts heighten and extend the vulnerability of many lowlands worldwide to such cascading hazards.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47786-4

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