The so called cucaracha slide in the culebra cut and on the gold hill back in the old days

From Wikipedia: The Culebra Cut, formerly called Gaillard Cut, is an artificial valley that cuts through the continental divide in Panama.
The cut forms part of the Panama Canal, linking Gatun Lake, and thereby the Atlantic Ocean, to the Gulf of Panama and hence the Pacific Ocean.
It is 12.6 km (7.8 mi) from the Pedro Miguel lock on the Pacific side to the Chagres River arm of Lake Gatun,
with a water level 26 m (85 ft) above sea level.

Construction of the cut was one of the great engineering feats of its time;
the immense effort required to complete it was justified by the great significance of the canal to shipping,
and in particular the strategic interests of the United States of America.

The first and largest major slide occurred in 1907 at Cucaracha.
The initial crack was first noted on October 4, 1907, followed by the mass wasting of about 382,000 m³ (500,000 cubic yards) of clay.
This slide caused many people to suggest the construction of the Panama Canal would be impossible;
Gaillard described the slides as tropical glaciers, made of mud instead of ice.
The clay was too soft to be excavated by the steam shovels,
and it was therefore largely removed by sluicing it with water from a high level.

After this, the sediment in the upper levels of the cut was removed, resulting in less weight over the weak strata.
Landslides continued to be a problem after the canal's opening, causing intermittent closures.

 

 

 

 

Image Source: US Library of Congress

 

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