Pittsburg, PA - Moon Township residents' backyards still sliding away
Chris Hoffman, CNN | 1/25/2024, 2:12 p.m.
Pittsburgh, PA - A landslide in Moon Township is getting worse, according to neighbors. KDKA-TV first reported on the issue last week and found neighbors whose backyards are collapsing more by the day.
Beaver Grade Road, which is maintained by PennDOT, is now just one lane. The homeowners up above feel if nothing is done, they could be losing more than just their backyards.
It is not the backyard Praghna Pati envisioned when he bought his house along Stags Leap Lane. It's slowly falling down the hillside behind his house.
"We used to enjoy the fireplace but with this happening, I've been not using it as much," Pati said.
It's not hard to see why. Since the beginning of the year, his yard, along with several of his neighbors, is falling away. It's only getting worse.
"Now it's very unsafe. I'm not letting anybody come to my backyard because of this," Pati said.
Just next door, his neighbor's yard continues to fall and slide. In the past week, several chunks of his yard have fallen. It's not done yet. Another few yards look like they are due to fall.
"Definitely I would say this is not safe. It's frustrating," neighbor Rangith said.
KDKA-TV's cameras could see mud sliding and more dirt moving on Wednesday. The fear is more of the hill collapses with all the rain coming down this week.
"We really like the house and everything but with this, we really don't feel safe," Rangith said.
According to the neighbors, they got a letter from PennDOT to come up with a plan to fix the hillside. That's something the homeowners don't know how to do.
"This is beyond me. This is not just like building a small retaining wall or something in the backyard," Rangith said.
"We are looking for their advice on what to do," Pati said.
They just hope whatever needs done is done soon.
Insurance companies said there is no coverage to help with this. Landslides are not part of any policy.
PennDOT is expected to talk with KDKA-TV tomorrow and will ask about fixing this hill and the homeowners' concerns.