Heavy rains caused multiple landslides in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York, forcing the closure of several High Peaks trails, including the popular Avalanche Pass Trail, NBC affiliate WPTZ reported.
State officials posted a video to social media showing the devastation caused by one of the slides, which swept away large trees and anything else in its path, according to North Country Public Radio.
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation has closed the Avalanche Pass Trail indefinitely.
"Multiple mud/rock slides have currently made the hiking trail through avalanche pass impassable," the DEC announced on Instagram, per North County Public Radio.
What's happening?
Heavy rainfall drenched Upstate New York in mid-July, dumping over five inches of rain on some areas, Syracuse.com reported.
It was not necessarily the total volume of water but rather the rate at which it fell that caused the most problems.
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Nanticoke, New York, for example, got soaked with 2.5 inches of rain over a span of just 40 minutes, according to Syracuse.com. Similarly, northern Oneida County got dumped with 3.25 inches in 4 hours.
The intense rainfall quickly saturated the steep slopes of the Adirondack Mountains, leading to multiple landslides, per the New York DEC.
"DEC staff are working to assess the damage and condition of the area impacted by the mud and rockslides," the organization said in a statement. "Hikers should avoid the area until the DEC announces that the trail has reopened."
The closures come at a bad time for the Adirondacks region, which experiences peak tourism during the summer months, per WPTZ.
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Definitely 👍 Why do landslides in the Adirondacks matter outside the region?
While no single weather event can be traced directly to human causes, scientists have forecast that, as global temperatures rise, severe weather events will become more intense.
This is particularly true when it comes to rainfall. As air temperature increases, the air absorbs more moisture. When the moisture from this more-saturated air eventually falls back to the earth as precipitation, the result is more rainfall per hour.
Because flood mitigation systems, whether natural or human-made, can only divert a given amount of water at a time, this more intense rainfall increases the likelihood of flash floods and landslides.
Landslides cost lives, damage property, and destroy crops, making their impacts felt well beyond the immediate area in the form of higher food prices and insurance premiums.
As might be expected, the number of landslides around the world, including deadly landslides, has been increasing along with the intensity of rainfall.
In April 2025, the world experienced 41 fatal landslides costing 107 lives, according to data collected by Dave Petley, a landslide expert and vice-chancellor of the University of Hull in the U.K.
From 2004 to 2016, the average number of fatal landslides for the month of April was just 28, Petley's research found, making April 2025's total nearly 50% above average.
What's being done about the increased number of landslides?
In order to reverse the trend of increased rainfall severity, and thereby lower the risk of landslides and flash floods, it is necessary to significantly reduce the amount of heat-trapping pollution entering the atmosphere.
While this problem can seem insurmountable, there are plenty of actions that individuals can take every day to make a real difference. When these actions are multiplied by millions of people, they can really add up.
For example, walking, riding a bike, taking public transit, or driving an EV all can improve local air quality while also reducing planet-warming pollution.
To push the environmental benefits of driving an EV even further, you can install solar panels on your home.
Charging your EV off home solar is cheaper than off the grid or at a public charging station, and adding a battery storage system will also allow you to keep the power on during grid outages. EnergySage's free tools make it easy to compare quotes from vetted local solar installers and to identify tax credits and other incentives available in your area, helping customers save up to $10,000.
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