California declares state of emergency over Rancho Palos Verdes landslide
Baku, September 3, AZERTAC
California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for the city of Rancho Palos Verdes Tuesday after the risk of ongoing landslides recently forced authorities to shut off power for more than 200 homes in two of the city’s neighborhoods, with some facing indefinite power outages, according to Los Angeles Times.
In the declaration, Newsom said land movement under the city that sits atop the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula has accelerated significantly following severe storms in 2023 and 2024 and “is now sliding at an average of 9 to 12 inches per week.”
The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services has been coordinating with emergency response officials in Los Angeles County for nearly a year, supporting the local assistance center, facilitating a federal mitigation grant to support the recent groundwater construction work in the area, and helping officials with initial damage estimates, the declaration states.
The power shutoff not only affects the day-to-day lives of residents but also poses new safety issues, as power is needed for telecommunications lines, the sewer system and the pumps that help slow land movement by expelling the groundwater that geologists say causes it.
The declaration issued early Tuesday comes two days after Southern California Edison announced plans to cut power to 140 homes in the Portuguese Bend neighborhood, where gas service was shut off a about month ago, and 105 homes in the Seaview neighborhood. The shutoffs are designed to reduce the risk that the shifting earth could spark a wildfire if power lines remained electrified, officials said.
The emergency declaration instructs all state agencies to provide equipment and assistance to local authorities to respond to the emergency and requires residents in the affected neighborhoods to obey the orders of emergency officials.
While Edison officials say there wasn’t one issue that led to their decision, they noted that a small fire began near Narcissa Drive in Portuguese Bend Thursday when a power line fell and ignited nearby vegetation. It was quickly extinguished, Rancho Palos Verdes officials stated.
The city issued an evacuation warning for the Portuguese Bend neighborhood, but many residents have decided to stay in their homes for now and some are staying with the support of generators.
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