Some residents have been unable to leave their homes due to the debris blocking roadways
A landslide in Pacific Palisades sent two hillside homes crashing down near Pacific Coast Highway and Sunset Boulevard, blocking roads and leaving some residents stranded, according to an Instagram post by @Citizen.
The post reported that the collapse occurred on the 17400 block of Castellammare Drive, where land weakened by the Palisades Fire gave way, splitting one home in half. Another home on Positano Road, which had previously burned, slid an estimated 50 to 60 feet down the slope. The landslide also caused sections of the road to collapse, making access impossible for some neighbors.
NBC4 reported that Los Angeles’ Bureau of Engineering has not yet determined the cause of the landslide. However, Nate Onderdonk, a professor of Earth Sciences at California State University Long Beach, told NBC4 that excess water—potentially from recent storms or a water main break linked to firefighting efforts—may have played a role in the collapse.
“The hillside didn’t get steeper magically,” Onderdonk told NBC4. “The rock type didn’t change, but if you add a whole lot of extra water, what you do is you destabilize that hillside.”
The Instagram post by @Citizen stated that some residents have been unable to leave their homes due to the debris blocking roadways. One neighbor reportedly contacted the city for information on clearing the area but was told officials are uncertain how to proceed due to the risk of further collapses.
NBC4 reported that the owner of the destroyed Castellammare Drive home was not injured, as he was living at another Pacific Palisades property. He initially felt relief that the house had survived the fire, only for it to later collapse due to shifting ground.
