On The Edge

Patricia and Terry Palmer are literally living on the edge. The recent rains soaked the couples back yard. Terry noticed his wooden deck had shifted in the soft soil, but when he looked over his iron railing he saw something far worse. His entire back yard slid down the hillside taking with it his retention wall, fence and trees. The scary part is the piers that hold up the homes foundation are partially exposed. Now the bad news, his insurance doesn't cover this kind of damage. The big question now is will they get assistance from the city. The city signed off on the homes construction. Did it know something like this might happen? The Palmer's are not alone, two other homes also have damage.
What do you think? Should they be left to deal with the damage or does the city have some responsibility?