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NORTH SALT LAKE -- In less than an hour, the house at 418 Springhill Circle in North Salt Lake, came crashing down.
"It went pretty quick. It's already in a precarious situation," said general contractor Greg Larson, with Buckridge Construction.
It went pretty quick. It's already in a precarious situation.
–Greg Larson, general contractor
On Thursday morning, demolition crews leveled the house, which was one of several in the area damaged with the slow movement of the hill. They will come back another time to remove the foundation and concrete.
James Keller, who lives in the neighborhood, said he didn't know the house was going to be demolished.
"When I got up here, I was surprised to find out this one's gone and this one has moved as much as it has in the last six months," Keeler said, referring to the house next door.
Josh Yeiter lives next door to the home as well. He says he wonders what this means for his house.
"The water has to go somewhere. The land is going to move," he said. "There's no telling if it's going to be the house or not, or whether it will go the other direction."
The house that remains sits empty, and the reason is obvious. The home is buckling and the foundation is cracked.
"That was in worse condition than what we just demolished. It's really bad," Larson said.
It will be up to the bank that owns the house to decide if it will have to come down too.
In the past 10 years, a slow moving landslide has damaged homes and forced families to move out.
In 2009, state geologists estimated the ground was moving at a rate of 2 inches a week, or 9 feet a year.
There's nothing we can do to keep the ground from moving. We can pass all the ordinances we want, but the dirt doesn't obey.
–Barry Edwards, city manager
North Salt Lake City Manager Barry Edwards says in the past 90 days the earth has been moving faster because of the rain and snow.
"There's nothing we can do to keep the ground from moving. We can pass all the ordinances we want, but the dirt doesn't obey," Edwards said.
But he said the homes to the north, which sit up against the mountain, are more stable.
"This is kind of in a pivot point -- so the landslide is pivoting around this earth -- so somehow something in here makes this dirt a little more stable and the landslide is moving around it," Edwards said.
He said the demolition shouldn't impact the movement in the ground or the homes around it. But those who own homes in the area are watching their values fall faster than the landslide.
"They're unsellable, and you wouldn't want to do that to anybody because they would be in the same predicament," said neighbor Stefanie Christiansen.
A group called the El Nino Foundation is helping homeowners attempt to move, but it's expensive and no one has the money to just walk away.
"We need help so we can get out of here and go on with our lives," Christiansen said.
"It would be great if it was that easy, but obviously, mortgages have to be paid," said Yeiter. "You got to stick with it until you absolutely have to move out."
For now, all residents can do is make the best of it.
"How it's going to work and what's going to happen -- only time can tell," Yeiter said.
For anyone who wants to help the community with relocation costs, information can be found on projectspringhill.com.
Story written by Sandra Yi with contributions from Alex Cabrero.
