Updates 1-31-24
With severe storms forecasted in the coming days, the City is in storm prep mode, with special attention to our landslide areas. We continue to closely monitor land movement, fill fissures, and have made sandbags and tarps available to residents in the landslide complex (sandbags are also available to all residents at City Hall).
The Los Angeles County Fire Department is patrolling the landslide complex for public safety and our Park Rangers are checking our open space areas for new fissures and signs of movement. You may have noticed roadway repairs were recently completed along Palos Verdes Drive South, including a stretch below Wayfarers Chapel.
Disaster preparedness resources, including links to the Know Your Zone evacuation platform and an evacuation packing list (PDF), are available on the City’s land movement webpage.
Trails Update
About 8 miles of trails in the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve remain temporarily closed at the recommendation of the City’s geologist. While most of these closures are in Portuguese Bend Reserve, in recent months, they have expanded to include portions of Abalone Cove, Filiorum, and Forrestal Reserves. We ask members of the public to please stay off trails that have been closed, and we thank them for their patience and cooperation. In hiking areas that remain open to the public, our Park Rangers continue to monitor trail conditions for public safety, perform maintenance, and fill fissures. Check rpvca.gov/trailalerts for the latest trail updates, including anticipated rain-related closures.
Dewatering Wells Update
In Abalone Cove, the Abalone Cove Landslide Abatement District (ACLAD) has installed four new dewatering wells south of Palos Verdes Drive South and two north. And in Klondike Canyon, the Klondike Canyon Landslide Abatement District (KCLAD) has installed one new well south of Palos Verdes Drive South. Pumps for all of these wells are expected to be installed starting next week. We are hopeful that the wells, including four paid for by the City, will help slow land movement.
Landslide Data and Map Update
The City’s most recent GPS monitoring data — which has been added to the land movement webpage — shows that average land movement velocities within the landslide complex since October 2023 have accelerated by a factor of three to four times compared to the previous 12-month monitoring period. In other words, we have seen as much movement (and in some cases, more movement) in the past three months as we did from October 2022 to October 2023. City staff is working to finalize heat maps to visualize the City’s land movement data. The heat maps are expected to be presented at the April 2 City Council meeting and will be added to the City website. Updated field maps showing the historic and expanding boundaries of the landslide complex have also been added to the City website.
February 6 City Council Meeting
You can learn more about everything happening with the landslide complex and the City’s short-term and long-term response by attending or tuning into the February 6 City Council meeting. That evening, the Council will consider renewing the local emergency declaration that was put in place in October, which must be renewed every 60 days to remain in effect. The City geologist will present his latest findings and City staff will provide an update on various activities and solutions to address the land movement since the local state of emergency was declared, as well as the latest trail conditions. A staff report (PDF) with more information is available on the City website.
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