8 Homes, Historic Structure Threatened After Landslide In South OC

SAN CLEMENTE, CA — Eight homes and a south Orange County historic structure were threatened by a hillside collapse in San Clemente Thursday afternoon.

The landslide was reported at 1 p.m. Thursday, when the slope on the west-facing side of the Casa Romantica building dropped roughly 20 feet. The building was red-tagged while San Clemente's contracted geologist learns more about the stability of the hillside.

Along with Casa Romantica, four adjacent residential units were evacuated with red tags and another four with yellow tags, the City of San Clemente said in a Thursday night statement.

"The toe of the failure is about 30 feet from the bottom of the slope and is being constantly monitored," San Clemente City Manager Andy Hall said. "City staff is in communication with the property manager to make sure residents are assisted as needed."

The landslide also shuttered train service through Orange County due to its proximity to the coast-hugging railroad tracks. Metrolink officials shut down rail service south of Laguna Niguel, while Amtrak officials said service was disrupted south of Irvine.

RELATED: Landslide Behind South OC Historical Building Halts Train Service

Metrolink spokesman Scott Johnson said the suspension of service was done out of caution and will be reopened once it is safe. Johnson said affected passengers can obtain Uber vouchers of up to $50 through Metrolink to get them through the closure area.

The landslide comes nearly two weeks after officials at Casa Romantica first reported ground movement that caused some cracks on the property's patio facing the ocean.

The San Clemente City Council this week approved a $75,000 contract with a geologic contractor to study the ground movement and develop a plan for shoring up the hillside.

According to a city staff report, the ground slippage was first detected April 16 and reported to the city the following day, with the facility reporting impacts to its concrete terrace but no movement of the actual building.

City Councilman Victor Cabral told KCAL9 after Thursday's slide that only a few inches of ground movement had been occurring each day, but on Thursday, about 20 feet gave way, taking parts of the concrete terrace with it.

The slide occurred about two miles north of where the Orange County Transportation Authority is finishing up construction to shore up a hillslide slope near the Cyprus Shore Homeowners Association in San Clemente, officials said.

City News Service contributed to this report.