City officials in Rancho Palos Verdes will hear from a geologist Tuesday night regarding the landslides there and how fast it’s going.
In late July, SoCalGas shut off natural gas service to more than 130 homes in the Portuguese Bend Community due to an ongoing landslide.
“We still have people that don't have hot water that are using taking cold showers or going to a gym or elsewhere to shower,” Claudia Gutierrez, the Portuguese Bend Community Association director, told KNX News’ Jon Baird. “And because it was such an abrupt shutoff, the gas company gave us $2500 you know, as a gift which doesn't cover much of anything, not even an electric water heater or an electrician to hook it up.”
Gutierrez added that out of the impacted homes, only six houses were damaged.
“We have at least 135 homes that are not damaged and we're all being punished,” she said. "Everyone."
She said they're also worried about losing electricity.
“It's kind of the writing on the wall that the power is gonna get shut off,” she said.
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In a letter to impacted customers, Southern California Edison wrote that it will continue to serve customers in the impacted areas “as long as it is safe to do so.”
“We are working with the city of Rancho Palos Verdes and Los Angeles County officials to monitor area conditions as they evolve,” officials wrote.
Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor John Cruikshank wrote to Elon Musk about the possibility of installing solar power and batteries to cover the residents.
During Tuesday night’s meeting, officials are also expected to discuss installing emergency hydraugers to pump out the ground groundwater that geologists say is causing the accelerated land movement.
The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in Taggart Hall at Hesse Park. It will also be available on Zoom.
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