Local officials and fire crews burnt down a $700,000 worth 4000-square-foot luxury home that was almost plunging into a Central Texas lake, deeming it the safest and cost efficient way to take down the house.
A few months ago, a landslide caused major destructions in Lake Whitney, Texas. Pieces of a 4000-square-foot luxury home, which was built on the edge of a 75-foot cliff, have been falling off, threatening to bring the whole house down in to the lake. Local officials and fire crews set the house on fire, deeming it the safest and cheapest option, according to an updated report from Mashable.
The house was set ablaze after 10 a.m. local time Friday, after filling hay into the garage and lighting it up with a gallon of gasoline. Previously, officials had considered pulling the home closer to land using a giant net but later dropped the idea because it wasn't safe. Owners Robert and Denise Webb, who are currently in Florida, gave their consent to set the property ablaze Thursday.
According to NBC, the 4,000-square-foot house, which was built in 2007, was worth $700,000. The Webs had purchased the house back in 2012 and were forced to leave the house and remove all their personal belongings from the property after they noticed cracks in the walls.
"You know, that's my life there that we're watching fall off," NBCDFW quoted Webb as saying."It's really tough, that house was special and I don't even know why it was so special but it was special to me."
The land started to give way in February, and since then about 50 yards of territory, separating it from the water's edge, has eroded, Mark Wilson, the chief deputy for the Hill County Sheriff's Department, said.
Webb and his wife said they bought the house in "good faith" after local inspectors confirmed to them that the property was built on stable land.
Previously, Webb and the local authorities decided to let the house fall apart on its own. However, they had to forfeit that option because not only was it too dangerous, it was also more expensive to have the area cleared after the falling. Webb will now have the charred debris moved to stable land while the fire crew will help move the slabs, said Tom Hemrick, Hill County's emergency management coordinator, NBC reports.
Below is the embedded video from CBSDFW's YouTube account, showing the house burning down.
