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Crews show 11 Investigates how they monitor landslides

PITTSBURGH — Even experts in Pittsburgh are calling this year's landslides unprecedented in recent memory. Target 11 investigator Rick Earle got an exclusive look at the crews monitoring landslides across the area, to make sure they won't suddenly give way.

Paul Loy is an engineer with Pittsburgh's Department of Mobility and Infrastructure. He's worked with the city for more than 40 years, but says this year is different.

"This is the worst for landslides that I've ever seen," Loy said.

Every week, Loy and his crew double check paint marks they leave on crumbling roads and hillsides. We joined them at a slide on Diana Place in Spring Hill. The paint marks help track any movement since the last visit.

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We spoke to one resident on Diana Place. Chris Choy told us she worried that new crack meant her house would soon slide away. The crews helped calm those fears.

"They were really nice and kind of informed me of what was going on, so I didn't feel like, oh no, my house is going to go away," Choy said.

Loy and his team are also monitoring a landslide on Gershon Street. The slide first closed that street in March. They are watching slides in Mount Washington and Squirrel Hill as well.

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Deputy Director Jeff Skalican told us they are looking at more than a dozen active slides in Pittsburgh, monitoring each one on a weekly basis. But some slides need to be prioritized.

"Our number one thing now is safety," he told Target 11. "If it's affecting any houses or peoples' safety, we're tackling those ones first."

All these landslides are adding up, so the city has formed a task force to seek out state and federal funding to cover a multi-million dollar bill. The city is also working to prevent future landslides, starting with storm drainage control.

"To control the water is one main thing we really have to look into," Skalican said. "Right now, we are looking to add more inlets to city streets, also for our hillsides."