Mobile Homes Red Tagged As Earth Erodes Beneath Mountain View Community
MOUNTAIN VIEW (KCBS) - Three homes have been red tagged in Mountain View's Sahara Mobile Village, where two weeks of heavy rain sent huge chunks of the hill beneath the community tumbling into bordering Stevens Creek.
The tranquility at the mobile home park, where dozens of homes sit atop a cliff overlooking the creek, disappeared with a loud crack Tuesday as the wet soil suddenly gave way, sending backyard decks and stairs some 30 feet toward the water below.
"It just dropped straight down, and that was it," said Bob Burnham, who lost his entire backyard Tuesday in a tumult that carried away decks, fencing and stairways.
KCBS' Betsy Gebhart Reports:
The rain had given way to record high temperatures. But the South Bay and Peninsula saw some of the worst mudslides after the weekend rain saturated the ground.
On Thursday, Burnham and two of his neighbors learned they would not be allowed to live in their red-tagged homes until at least summer.
County officials must assess whether to remove some of the homes entirely as they build a retaining wall to prevent further erosion.
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