23-05-2025
SoCalGas to begin restoration process for Rancho Palos Verdes neighborhood
After roughly eight months, the first homes in Rancho Palos Verdes could have their natural gas service restored by July.
The restoration process will begin on May 27 in the Seaview neighborhood, specifically homes on Dauntless Exultant and Admirable Drives, according to the utility company SoCalGas.
The process is expected to finish in about four to five weeks. Once completed, SoCalGas crews will evaluate the homes along Palos Verdes Drive South and determine if they can restore services to residents there. The utility company added that engineers are developing designs and plans to restore service to Portuguese Bend Beach Club communities and Rolling Hills.
"We are grateful to these communities for their patience during what we know has been a difficult time," said Maria Martinez, director of gas engineering. "Given the sustained decreases in land movement, we look forward to the safe restoration of natural gas service for those who are ready to reconnect."
Over the last two years, land movement has severely damaged roads, homes and utilities in Rancho Palos Verdes, eventually leading the region's major natural gas and electricity providers to shut off their services to hundreds of residents. Since August, the Portuguese Bend slide has impacted about 650 homes.
The ongoing natural disaster prompted FEMA and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services to implement a $42 million voluntary buyout program, allowing residents to sell their homes at "fair market value."
In October, geologists gave residents a small glimmer of hope after confirming that the slide had decelerated from an average of 13 inches a week to 8 inches, a roughly 38% decrease. Further studies conducted by researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory showed that the movement slowed to about 4 inches a week in the fall of 2024.
SoCalGas stressed that if land movement increases in the future, the company may be forced to shut off services again.
For more information about the restoration process, click here.
