Articles | Volume 15, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-15-1069-2015
© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-15-1069-2015
© Author(s) 2015. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
27 May 2015
Research article |
| 27 May 2015
The 27 May 1937 catastrophic flow failure of gold tailings at Tlalpujahua, Michoacán, Mexico
J. L. Macías
Instituto de Geofísica, Unidad Michoacán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Campus-Morelia, Morelia, 58090, Michoacán, Mexico
P. Corona-Chávez
Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Morelia, 58040, Michoacán, Mexico
J. M. Sanchéz-Núñez
Instituto Politécnico Nacional-CIIEMAD. Miguel Othón de Mendizabal s/n. Col. La Escalera., 07320, Distrito Federal, Mexico
M. Martínez-Medina
Maestría en Geociencias y Planificación del Territorio, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Morelia, 58040, Michoacán, Mexico
Instituto Nacional de Estadística Geografía e Informática, Centro de Información Michoacán, 58130, Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico
V. H. Garduño-Monroy
Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Morelia, 58040, Michoacán, Mexico
L. Capra
Centro de Geociencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Campus-Juriquilla, Querétaro, 76230, Mexico
F. García-Tenorio
Instituto de Geofísica, Unidad Michoacán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Campus-Morelia, Morelia, 58090, Michoacán, Mexico
G. Cisneros-Máximo
Instituto de Geofísica, Unidad Michoacán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Campus-Morelia, Morelia, 58090, Michoacán, Mexico
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Cited
9 citations as recorded by crossref.
- REMOVED:Patterns of plant mortality caused by a copper mine spill F. Molina-Freaner & J. Martínez-Rodríguez 10.1016/j.ancene.2022.100344
- Tailings-flow runout analysis: examining the applicability of a semi-physical area–volume relationship using a novel database N. Ghahramani et al. 10.5194/nhess-20-3425-2020
- Impact of Mine Leachates on a Carbonate Aquifer (SE Spain) M. Díaz-Puga et al. 10.1007/s10230-020-00703-9
- Respuesta de plantas jóvenes de cuatro especies de coníferas a la exposición al mercurio X. Altonar-Gómez et al. 10.21829/myb.2021.2732160
- Quality of reconstituted tailings samples based on their mechanical response J. Oliveira et al. 10.1051/e3sconf/202454414009
- Total Mercury in Plant Tissue from a Mining Landscape in Western Mexico V. Osuna-Vallejo et al. 10.1007/s00128-018-2488-0
- Catastrophic mass flows resulting from tailings impoundment failures N. Rana et al. 10.1016/j.enggeo.2021.106262
- Failure analysis and flow dynamic modeling using a new slow-flow functionality: the 2022 Jiaokou (China) tailings dam breach C. Su et al. 10.1007/s10346-023-02146-z
- Tailings storage facilities in China: Historical failure incidents, existing status, and database-driven quantitative risk assessment C. Su et al. 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2024.104973
9 citations as recorded by crossref.
- REMOVED:Patterns of plant mortality caused by a copper mine spill F. Molina-Freaner & J. Martínez-Rodríguez 10.1016/j.ancene.2022.100344
- Tailings-flow runout analysis: examining the applicability of a semi-physical area–volume relationship using a novel database N. Ghahramani et al. 10.5194/nhess-20-3425-2020
- Impact of Mine Leachates on a Carbonate Aquifer (SE Spain) M. Díaz-Puga et al. 10.1007/s10230-020-00703-9
- Respuesta de plantas jóvenes de cuatro especies de coníferas a la exposición al mercurio X. Altonar-Gómez et al. 10.21829/myb.2021.2732160
- Quality of reconstituted tailings samples based on their mechanical response J. Oliveira et al. 10.1051/e3sconf/202454414009
- Total Mercury in Plant Tissue from a Mining Landscape in Western Mexico V. Osuna-Vallejo et al. 10.1007/s00128-018-2488-0
- Catastrophic mass flows resulting from tailings impoundment failures N. Rana et al. 10.1016/j.enggeo.2021.106262
- Failure analysis and flow dynamic modeling using a new slow-flow functionality: the 2022 Jiaokou (China) tailings dam breach C. Su et al. 10.1007/s10346-023-02146-z
- Tailings storage facilities in China: Historical failure incidents, existing status, and database-driven quantitative risk assessment C. Su et al. 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2024.104973
Latest update: 30 Oct 2025
Short summary
On 27 May 1937, a voluminous flood caused the death of at least 300 people in the mining region of Tlalpujahua, Michoacán, central Mexico. The flood was triggered by the breaching of the impoundment of the Los Cedros tailings. The flood reached maximum speeds of ~25 m/s and deposited 1.5 x 10^6 m3 of material. The FLO-2D hydraulic model reproduced the breached flow (0.5 sediment concentration) with a maximum flow discharge of 8000 m3/sec and a total outflow volume of 2.5 x 106 m3.
On 27 May 1937, a voluminous flood caused the death of at least 300 people in the mining region...
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