The neighbours of two mansions worth £1.4 million said they ‘didn’t hear a thing’ while a deadly landslip turned two dream homes into rubble.
The freak mudslide has left the pensioner homeowners feeling heartbroken after it caused their ‘forever’ homes to become perched precariously above a 50ft deep railway line.
Now both properties have been officially condemned, leaving the owners homeless and their Millionaires’ Row neighbours waiting for news about the future of their own properties.
Stephen and Lynne Coverdale have lived in their property on the exclusive Woodlands Estate in Baildon, West Yorkshire, since it was built in 1986, while David and Fiona Lerner moved in next door in 2009 after buying their home for £385,000.
Both homes had more than doubled in value since then but neither couple had any plans to sell – until the dramatic turn of events in February.
The freak mudslide has left the pensioner homeowners feeling heartbroken after it caused their ‘forever’ homes to become perched precariously above a 50ft deep railway line
All that remains of their £700k houses is rubble following the collapse of a Victorian railway embankment
One of the houses was flattened on Monday while the other happened later in the week under the plans drawn up and approved by Network Rail. Pictured: One of the houses on the exclusive Woodlands Estate in Baildon, West Yorkshire, before it was demolished
All that remains of their £700k houses is rubble following the collapse of a Victorian railway embankment which has brought other homes closer to the crumbling cliffs.
One of the houses was flattened on Monday while the other happened later in the week under the plans drawn up and approved by Network Rail.
The four pensioner owners, aged in their 60s and 70s, were said by neighbours to be too heartbroken to talk about the loss of what they believed were their forever homes.
Both couples had to be evacuated after a mudslide led to the back gardens falling down on the railway tracks below.
A neighbour said: ‘We did not realise how serious it was at first. We did not hear a thing – the earth moved so quietly. The next thing we knew the gardens were gone and our neighbours were packing up all their stuff.
‘They had to spend the night in a hotel straight after it happened. Then they were moved into rented accommodation locally. One couple has gone on holiday – and we don’t blame them.
‘ I don’t think they wanted to see what has happened to their houses over the last few days.
‘We are a close knit community and this has shocked us to the core.’
The four pensioner owners, aged in their 60s and 70s, were said by neighbours to be too heartbroken to talk about the loss of what they believed were their forever homes. Pictured: A digger demolishes one of the homes
Fences now surround the scene where the houses used to be and the owners have been moved to temporary accommodation
The two houses pictured before the demolition. They were both perched directly above the Ilkley to Bradford line, which serves four local schools
Experts have installed monitoring devices all around the gardens and are checking around the clock for any danger signs
An aerial view of the houses (at the top of the image) and the railway line below prior to the demolition
Network Rail has now resumed around the clock efforts to reopen the line near Bradford after being forced to back off when the landslip was deemed too dangerous to work on.
Temporary sewage pipes have been laid across nearby gardens to keep the sanitation system flowing. So far electricity and gas supplies have not been affected.
Services through the town have been suspended since the disaster on February 9.
A spokesman for Network Rail said today: ‘After repair work was paused due to complex issues on site, work that will allow trains between Ilkley and Bradford has resumed is now well underway.
‘The volume of work required means that the line is expected to reopen at the end of June.
‘Northern has operated a rail replacement service since the beginning of the closure which will continue to connect passengers through the area.
‘Passengers are advised to check their journey before travelling via National Rail Enquiries or Northern’s social media channels and website.’
Network Rail said it ‘deeply sympathised’ with the homeowners affected and would continue to make ‘every effort to look after their interests’
Jason Hamilton, Route Director for Network Rail’s North & East route, said: ‘I want to thank passengers and the community for their ongoing patience, and can assure them that work is now well under way towards getting the line reopened as quickly and safely as possible.’
Meanwhile, residents are desperately waiting for news from Network Rail bosses about whether their homes are at risk from the ground movements.
Experts have installed monitoring devices all around the gardens and are checking around the clock for any danger signs.
One victim said: ‘It is all being monitored remotely. They say assume everything is well unless you see us – so we are all hoping we don’t see them.
‘I was hoping to buy a new carpet but I am waiting to see if it is worth it since I might not still be here.’
The two houses to be written off were both perched directly above the Ilkley to Bradford line, which serves four local schools and is set to reman partly blocked until June.
Margaret Dugdale, 68, a retired NHS clinical scientist lives one side of the two condemned houses.
She hopes her home will be spared because it appears to be on more stable ground way from the edge. But she admitted: ‘If I have to move out, I have to move out. I have no idea where I stand with the insurance.
‘I am behind with the garden but there is no point if I am not going to be there. We first knew something was wrong when cracks were spotted in one of the gardens. Then the gardens went. When me and my daughter saw what had happened, we nearly had a fit.
The two houses were both perched directly above the Ilkley to Bradford line, which serves four local schools and is set to reman partly blocked until June
‘They tried to stop it by removing 2,500 tons of earth to reduce the pressure on the cutting. But they could not stop it and now we hear it might be too dangerous to work on.
‘My house was valued at £700,000 but who knows now. I have heard there have been three other landslips in embankments in other parts of the country since this one.
‘One these things as big as this start to move you cannot do anything about it. I don’t blame Network Rail.
‘It could be 101 things that started it off and we have had such a lot of rain. We think it has been moving for some time, although before the movement has been slight. Then the gardens went and we do not know who is going to pay for all this.’
The upmarket homes were developed on the footprint of the country seat of a former Bradford textile king. There are ten houses on site and the big house has been transformed into four flats.
Mrs Dugdale added: ‘We have all lived here a long time and all know each other which makes it worse when something like this happens. It is worse than people forced to move for HS2.
‘At least they were compensated for leaving their homes. It has had a massive effect on the couple in their 70s. They lavished money on the house to get the absolute best thinking they were stopping there and wanted it to be nice.’
No heard the gardens collapse. Mick Spencer, who lives on the property on the other side of the two condemned houses, said: ‘There was just a slight tremor. We are not affected – or so we understand. But it is devastating for the people who had been here 30 odd years.
Network Rail said wet weather in recent weeks had made the situation worse and the homes became structurally unsafe
Temporary plastic pipes have been laid through his garden to carry the sewage away and a noise machine clatters way in the garden to maintain the flew
Network Rail confirmed demolition work began on Monday (pictured)
‘Network Rail have been very elusive. They are not giving out very much information at all and we are all in the dark.’ The main impact on his property has been part of the sewage system being swept away.
Temporary plastic pipes have been laid through his garden to carry the sewage away and a noise machine clatters way in the garden to maintain the flew.
‘It is right pain,’ Mr Spencer, who has lived in the house for 20 years with his wife Karen, continued. ‘Obviously, we are in contact with solicitors. We are in a bit of quandary because we do not know what we are supposed to do.
‘It is a constant worry.’
Network Rail said wet weather in recent weeks had made the situation worse and the homes were now structurally unsafe.
Jason Hamilton, the organisation’s route director, said ‘every effort’ had been made to save the homes, but all alternative solutions had now been ruled out.
He added: ‘Regrettably, after a number of weeks of looking at an extensive number of options, due to the complex nature of the site and the critical need to reopen the railway line, we need to use our statutory powers to allow us to safely resume repairs to this site.
‘That will mean safely removing the properties’, he continued adding, it was ‘a very unusual situation and a sensitive situation’.
‘We’ve taken full consideration of that as we’ve worked through a wide range of options, which we’ve now unfortunately exhausted,’ he added.
Network Rail ‘deeply sympathised’ with the homeowners affected and the organisation would continue to make ‘every effort to look after their interests’, he underlined.