In San Bernardino mountains, residents hit by devastating mudslide fear more to come
On their second day home after a devastating mudslide destroyed their community of homes, people here can barely believe how much more damage is in store for them.
The mudslides sent a wall of water over 600 feet, destroying homes in the village of Red Rock, and forcing an estimated 1,000 residents to flee.
The fire that followed was so intense that the Red Rock Volunteer Fire Department had to save themselves rather than fight the flames. The village is now working to recover from the mudslide and the new threat of more flooding.
A woman with a baby in a stroller talks to the reporter about how much she loves her country.
“I love it here. I love the country. I’m happy to be here. I love everybody around me,” she said. “I feel safe here, and we have a beautiful, beautiful country here.”
A boy with a backpack walks in a new neighborhood where all the houses are being built.
The new neighborhood is a neighborhood designed for people who want a house on a lot with a view without the trouble of a long commute, a child or a car. The new homes are just a couple of blocks from the San Bernardino County line.
“It’s going to be a neighborhood here. It’s going to be safe in here,” said John Buhlmann, president of the Red Rock Fire Rescue Company.
Red Rock’s population is roughly 5,000 people, and about 800 homes were destroyed in the mudslides.
Buhlmann is hoping to get out of his town house next year, and has talked to residents that would move here, if nothing were to change. But after the mudslide, and the flooding in his hometown, he may have his answer.
“We’ve had to do a survey of the people out in the community, and we’re getting requests to move them to the new town that we’re building, or to San Bernardino,” Buhlmann said. “We’re going to do our best to welcome the people, but we have to also do the work of getting them out of here and safe as possible.”
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