Oh my goodness! That was posted 3 days ago. Ominous is right!
No. This was posted in 2011.
Here's more local info:
"On Thursday, St. Paul police spokesman Howie Padilla said it's now believed that the landslide came from above where the students were walking. Authorities initially thought that the ground, which was saturated by persistent rain, gave way from underneath them."
We have had 6 days of continuous rain - unusual.
There are homes on the bluff behind the park, but they have been there for years - almost all older homes. In fact, there are many homes along the Mississippi River bluffs; there are condos upstream that have been constructed in the last 5 yrs and more being built.
This is not a dangerous, isolated area. The park is across the river from downtown St. Paul and is well-used. In fact, there are many science fossil-hunting field trips scheduled with the St. Paul Parks. Lilydale Park has a paved bicycle trail through it, and there is also a paved road, plus a paved parking lot at Pickrell Lake (fishing). At one end of the park is the Lilydale Yacht Club; at the other end is Harriet Island Pavillion and a bridge to downtown St. Paul. Unfortunately, the media made the accident site appear isolated because trails to the fossil sites (unpaved) are meant for foot traffic; getting vehicles there is difficult.
