A Draper home collapses into a ravine due to landslides

No one was injured in the collapse at Hidden Canyon Estates, officials said Saturday.

Two evacuated homes in Draper collapsed Saturday morning due to landslides, and other homes in the neighborhood are under investigation as snowmelt affects ground conditions, Draper officials said in a news release.

The two houses, located at 2464 and 2477 E Springtime Road, were evacuated in October after officials at the Draper Building revoked occupancy certificates for the apartments. The city declared both houses in Hidden Canyon Estates “unsuitable for human habitation” due to dangerous ground shifting and fractures in the foundations of the houses.

No one was injured in the collapse, but at least one of the houses still contained some of the homeowners’ personal belongings.

Amanda Wardlow’s parents closed their “dream home” in December 2021 and were evicted in November 2022 due to the unsafe conditions. She said developer Edge Homes estimated at the time that they would be able to come up with a plan for her parents to return to their house in six months.

“[My mom] kept all her work stuff in there and then all our baby pictures and scrapbooks and all these really sentimental items were in her office that we were supposed to be picking up today,” Wardlow said Saturday. “We wanted to break into the house because none of the doors would open because of the displacement.”

One of the collapsed houses slid onto nearby Ann’s Trail. The city has now closed this trail and Clark’s Trail to public use for the time being and is urging individuals to stay away from the area due to the hazardous conditions.

Though homes had concerns about foundation ahead of Utah’s record-breaking season for snow cover, officials are still concerned about soil stability in the Wasatch foothills as snow continues to melt.

Engineers this morning issued evacuation orders for two more houses – those on either side of the two houses that collapsed. Residents of those homes will be evacuated today, officials said.

“Draper City has been pursuing environmental stability studies conducted by Edge Homes for months with property developer Edge Homes,” the release reads. “As the snowpack melts and conditions change, other homes in the neighborhood are being reviewed for safety concerns.”

Wardlow said the family may be searching for personal items that survived in the rubble from the home collapse. But she’s unsure if anything can be salvaged if the area is deemed safe.

“My parents are just absolutely devastated,” Wardlow said. “This should be her forever home with this beautiful view of the valley. They bought this house and did many renovations after closing it to specialize and make it theirs. And now it’s gone. It’s at the bottom of a ravine.”