DRAPER, Utah — What was left of one of the homes that partially slid off a cliff in Draper in recent days is finally gone. Demolition crews struck down the remaining parts of the building Wednesday.
“It’s been obviously hectic. A little scary, you know?” said neighbor Cody Probst.
No demolition was necessary on the next door lot since that home slid off in its entirety.
“I think they’re doing as good as you can expect,” said Draper Mayor Troy Walker. “Who plans for this?”
Walker said the next step is assessing a third evacuated home nearby.
“If this is unstable, they’ll likely just tear it down here so we don’t have to have it go down into the canyon,” he said.
Cleaning up the canyon will be a feat of its town, with the mayor saying the city will likely cut a temporary access road to haul the homes out of there.
“We’ve done it before, so it’s no unprecedented for us, and we’d re-vegetate it. It’s probably going to disrupt the trails for a few months,” said Walker.
It’s been an exhausting few days for neighbors who are grateful for the teardown, but are tired of dealing with curious onlookers.
“The noise is frustrating but at least it means progress now. Whereas this weekend it was kind of frustrating,” said Probst.
Along with the residents, the city also wants the unnecessary traffic to stay away as there have been reports of people sneaking into the canyon and stealing from the wreckage.
“These neighbors need a break. They had thousands of people up here over the weekend and it’s stressing them out,” said Walker. “That’s our goal: to keep it calm for the neighbors, keep it safe for everybody else. So if you do it, you’re going to get a trespassing ticket and there’s no sympathy. There’s no warning. You’re going to pay the full fine, and that’s the way it is.”
