Bournemouth East Cliff 'road closed for week' after landslip

A road next to a section of collapsed cliff in Bournemouth is to close for a week while the area is assessed.

A stretch of the 100ft-high (30m) cliff in East Cliff, near the memorial for Red Arrows pilot Jon Egging, fell away on Sunday morning, damaging a cliff railway and crushing a toilet block.

The borough council said a detailed assessment, requiring the closure of the road, would take up to seven days.

It said further landslips were "not likely to be imminent".

Bournemouth Borough Council said work would begin early on Wednesday and diversions would be in place from East Overcliff Drive at the junction with Manor Road and at the Russell Cotes Road junction with Bath Road.

The East Cliff Zig Zag footpath will also be closed and a cordon along the promenade will extend 120m (394ft) either way from the site of the landslip.

A stretch of the 100ft (30m)-high cliff fell away on Sunday morning

Head of seafront operations Chris Saunders said: "The advice received is that further landslips are not likely to be imminent.

"However, a close and detailed assessment of the area of cliff from both the top and bottom is necessary over a number of days, in order for recommendations to be made about what future work or further decisions are necessary.

"Barriers and cordons will remain in place during this time and, so as not to impede the inspection, we are asking the public to observe these cordons."

The East Cliff Lift, an Edwardian funicular railway built in 1908, was partially submerged by debris. A public toilet block at the foot of the cliffs was also destroyed.

Cracks started appearing on the promenade on Saturday, leading the council to close the area.

The Edwardian funicular railway at East Cliff was damaged during the slip

The memorial to Red Arrows pilot Jon Egging (on the left) is now dangerously close to the cliff edge