Huge waves bring flooding to South West

Cars were damaged by waves at Mousehole

Huge waves whipped up by winds that reached 65mph have caused flooding in a number of seaside towns in Cornwall.

A hotel's ground floor was flooded in St Mawes after waves smashed windows.

Ferries were cancelled in Cornwall and there were delays on trains out of the South West after waves topped sea defences at Dawlish in Devon.

Ferry firm Condor said the Liberation was unable to berth in Guernsey and passengers to Poole were advised to book alternative services.

The ground floor including the cafe at the Ship and Castle Hotel in St Mawes was flooded for several hours until the fire service pumped out the water.

Porthleven in Cornwall is under siege as huge waves pile into the seaside town

Firefighters were also called to deal with flooding at three homes in Penzance and flooding was also reported in Looe.

A spokesperson for The Ship and Castle Hotel said: "The weather on Sunday caused some minor damage to The View Café which was closed at the time. The hotel is operating as usual and the café will reopen on Friday."

Ferries were cancelled at St Mawes where a hotel ground floor was also flooded

Spring tides were forecast for about 21:00 BST but the wind is expected to subside, according to forecasters.

Twelve flood warnings - the second highest category - and 16 flood alerts have been issued by the Environment Agency for the South West.

Cawsand in Cornwall was among the seaside communities hit by the storm

Part of the esplanade in Exmouth, Devon was closed to protect people from flying debris.

The Sandbanks chain ferry between Poole and Studland in Dorset was halted for two hours.

The second day of the two-day Fish and Ships food and boat festival in Portland, where gusts of up to 50mph were predicted, was also abandoned.