How dangerous are the crumbling Del Mar cliffs?
Thankfully, beachgoers were clear of the landslides each time the sandstone bluffs came crashing down onto the beach in rolling clouds of dust and heavy debris. In one case, a section of rock that broke loose was reportedly 50 feet wide.
"Two of these landslides happened in the middle of the day in areas where people sit regularly," said
The recent collapses -- which occurred on
Cliff collapses near sunbathers in
However, the rapid succession of collapses along the seaside cliffs, which occurred between
"It's pretty unusual to have three large landslides in such a small area in such a short amount of time," Young said. "But basically all the cliffs are dangerous places and they all have their day."
The incidents were so severe that two temporarily halted service along the railroad tracks that are perched atop the bluffs. Trains weren't delayed following the collapse in September only because officials with the
Officials said the last time trains were delayed due to a cliff failure in
Passengers riding the Coaster or Amtrak trains that use the rail corridor face no imminent danger from the crumbling bluffs, said
"The train is safe," Fordham said. "We inspect the tracks weekly.
"Should there be at any time an act-of-God bluff collapse or earthquake," he added, "we'd go in and inspect the tracks and determine whether we should continue train operations."
Such collapses, accelerated by sea-level rise, also illustrate the potentially costly impacts of climate change.
Pounding waves could eventually cause so much damage to the cliffs that sections of the track would need to be relocated, the cost of which could be as much as
Rising tides in
Homeowners have adamantly rejected any plans to retreat from the shoreline. This month the city insisted that it would build seawalls and continually replenish beaches before it would ever consider drafting plans to relocate the city's opulent seaside housing stock.
At the same time, city leaders have expressed some alarm about the recent collapses.
"I think we are all very concerned with the stability of the
Other efforts to stave off cliff erosion include planned improvements to stormwater drainage that services nearby communities. Runoff from homes has repeatedly saturated sections of the bluff, adding to the instability.
"You have waves eroding the bottom of the cliffs and groundwater conditions that can add weight to the cliff and lubricate a landslide," said Young with the
Study finds
In the last 20 years, the
Following the collapse in August, the transit district also announced plans to erect fencing around sections of the tracks to prevent trespassers from trampling vegetation that helps stabilize the cliffs.
In response, a petition was recently launched at change.org, opposing the fencing as limiting beach access unnecessarily.
On Tuesday, the agency denied that the fencing project had anything to do with preventing cliff-side erosion.
"The fencing is not part of the stabilization project," Fordham said. "The fencing would be primarily to eliminate trespassing in NCTD (
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Twitter: @jemersmith
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