‘Catastrophic failure’: LaVerkin landslide on verge of claiming more homes

Written by Mori Kessler
October 26, 2023

ST. GEORGE — A landslide that previously claimed two homes on a hillside overlooking the Confluence Park in LaVerkin is on the verge of claiming two more.

The Poulsen home on 560 West in the Overlook subdivision that is being threatened by a behind the home, LaVerkin, Utah, Oct. 23, 2023 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Denise and Reese Poulsen bought their home on 560 North in the Overlook subdivision in 2015 with the expectation it would be the last place they’d ever live. At the time they purchased the home it was valued at around $400,000.

Now, as the ground shifts beneath the floor and the building is gradually ripped from its foundation, “the value is at zero,” Denise Poulsen said.

Friends of the Poulsens were busily moving about their home Tuesday afternoon as they helped pack away items or run them out to a van. All the while they walked on a floor that had a noticeable dip where part of the ground beneath the home had begun to slip away.

Elsewhere in the home, cracks could be seen on the walls and in doorways and served as ever-present reminders of why the Poulsens were relocating.

The day prior the Poulsens were visited by engineers from St. George-based Geotechnical Testing Services who had been requested to provide an opinion on the impact of the landslide. They recorded their findings in a letter shared with the Poulsens and LaVerkin City that noted the slide taking place behind their home and the impacts it was having on the home proper.

“There are numerous sheetrock cracks inside the residence, most were visible on the northern portion of the residence,” the letter states. “Several of the cracks were repaired by the homeowner on Saturday, October 21, 2023. Our observations made during the site visit indicate that the cracks have open approximately 1/2-inch since the Saturday repair.”

A crack along the doorstep of the Poulsen home that is a result of the foundation of the building shifting due to a landslide that threatens to take the building with it, LaVerkin, Utah, Oct. 24, 2023 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

The dip in the floor was mentioned along with doors in the home not being able to close correctly. Observations made concerning the landslide below the home also concerned the engineers.

“It is our opinion that (the) landslide is actively moving and as we recommended during our site visit, (for) safety reasons, the occupants of the home should immediately move out,” the Geotechnical Testing Services letter states. “Based upon our observations we estimated that a catastrophic failure of the landslide and residence could occur at any time.”

Two years ago, St. George News reported on two homes lost to the landslide. Those homes once sat south of the Poulsens’ home. The new landslide, which appears to be caused by the same issues that claimed the other homes, is directly behind the Poulsens’ home.

“The slippage started three weeks ago,” Denise Poulsen said. “They don’t know how long the houses are going to stand as they’re tilting so far.”

Denise Poulsen said she and her husband were awakened that morning by neighbors who came to help them pack. They were unaware those neighbors had already spent most of the night helping the family next door pack as well.

The Poulsens’ next-door neighbors declined to speak with St. George but confirmed they and the Poulsens were also visited by LaVerkin Police Chief Nick Nuccitelli and a Washington County Sheriff’s deputy on Monday who spoke to them about the landslide situation.

Denise and Reese Poulsen left their home on 560 West in LaVerkin due to the likelihood it will be destroyed by a landslide behind their home, LaVerkin, Utah, Oct. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of FoFundMe.com, St. George News

The geotech engineers and police chief weren’t the only ones who visited the Poulsens as a plumber also arrived to tell them how the landslide was threatening their water connections, Denise Poulsen said. Their Latter-day Saint bishop also showed up at their door to offer provide and organize aid.

“Right now we’re feeling very loved and very picked on,” Denise Poulsen said. “Loved for the neighbors and the kindness that is being shown. Picked on because, three weeks, really? And our whole life is changed. That’s an incredible time spin.”

In addition to losing their home, she said homeowners insurance will not cover the problem. The Poulsens also said the city claims no responsibility for what is taking place on the hillside, as it is occurring on private property and isn’t being caused by anything the city itself has done.

“So that part is very frustrating to know there was no insurance coverage we could get,” she said. “There’s also no help from the (city) government we can get.”

On top of it all, Poulsen shared that she is going through active cancer treatment.

“We’ve been under a little stress before this,” she said.

Signs of the landslide that claimed two homes along 560 West in LaVerkin, Utah, Oct. 24, 2023 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

The Poulsens have moved to a temporary location while they figure out what to do next.

A neighbor has set up a GoFundMe donation account to aid the Poulsens in securing a new home with a goal of $400,000. As of Thursday afternoon, it had raised over $1,700.

According to a geological survey from Sunrise Engineering that LaVerkin city officials commissioned over two years ago, the Overlook subdivision is in a moderate landslide hazard zone and the root cause for the original two houses’ collapse was groundwater from unconsumed irrigation. The effect of irrigation on the groundwater flow was estimated to be four times greater than the effect of natural precipitation.

Water running beneath the hillside has again been pinpointed as the cause of the new slide. The water also appears to come from a spring and is not related to any municipal water system.

The Sunrise Engineering survey provided recommendations for addressing the situation.

Groundwater flowing on the surface should be redirected away from the slide, and a proper drain system to channel underground flow could be designed with more investigation. The survey also recommends conducting a more in-depth hydrogeologic study to understand the flow of groundwater in that area.

“The city continues to monitor the slide every day,” Kyle Gubler, the LaVerkin City administrator, told St. George in an email. “The city right now … is ensuring the general safety of the citizens.”

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mori Kessler serves as a Senior Reporter for St. George News, having previously contributed as a writer and Interim Editor in 2011-12, and an assistant editor from 2012 to mid-2014. He began writing news as a freelancer in 2009 for Today in Dixie, and joined the writing staff of St. George News in mid-2010. He enjoys photography and won an award for photojournalism from the Society of Professional Journalists for a 2018 photo of a bee inspector removing ferals bees from a Washington City home. He is also a shameless nerd and has a bad sense of direction.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @MoriKessler@STGnews

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