Relief of California’s years long drought had an unexpected side effect on the Cal Poly campus as the newly green rolling hillside slid slowly into the study hall of a student housing building.
By the evening of Feb. 27, Cal Poly Officials said, all belongings had been removed from Fremont Hall and final deliveries to students staying on campus were made.
The dorm building is not expected to reopen this academic year.
After an initial emergency evacuation Feb. 18, “due to unstable soil along the adjacent hillside and trees immediately behind the building,” 270 students were displaced and unable to retrieve personal effects until the area was made safe for entry.
Local company Meat Head Movers, helped cart out boxes and deliver them to newly cramped apartments across the campus after a Thursday packing day, pictured here.
“Since the Saturday evacuation, we have seen additional deterioration of the hillside behind Fremont Hall. The increasing size and magnitude of the slide area is causing concern about encroaching water and mud,” read a campus announcement to students, “After further investigation, careful consideration, and in the interest of your safety, it is necessary to close Fremont Hall by Friday for the remainder of the academic year. This is not the outcome we had hoped for, nor is it a decision we have made lightly. Nevertheless, it’s the right decision to keep you all safe.”
Earlier statements gave more detail: The hill covers several acres and the soil is about 30’ deep. The mud continues to slide down toward the building. We have most of the bike enclosure down and plan to use that space behind the building to bring in equipment to begin removing earth…The Study Lounge that juts out toward the hill in the back of the building is most at risk …The building remains unsafe for students to live in.
