Hemsby: Two more homes on cliff edge demolished

Two more homes close to the cliff edge in Norfolk have been demolished amid fears they would fall into the sea.

Residents left their chalets in The Marrams in Hemsby on Friday after the sandy cliffs beneath them eroded.

Some of the properties were within 1m (3.2ft) of the cliff edge.

A third property was pulled down on Saturday after several outbuildings were lost to the sea during high tide on Friday night.

Nicolette, who was passing by as the second of the three homes was being pulled down, described it as "brutal" and said it was an "emotional experience" watching it.

She said: "People lived there, they enjoyed their times there and to see what coastal erosion is doing to not only the nature, the environment, but people's lives is really sad."

Trevor, who was with her, added: "I guess these people have seen it coming slowly for a number of years but it's happened so much quicker than people ever expected."

Sue, whose property was the first to be taken down, said it was "soul destroying".

Along with her neighbours, she spent Saturday morning hurriedly packing up her belongings before the demolition teams moved in.

Sue said she wished more could have been done to save her home of three years.

Sue, who did not want to give her surname, said watching her home being demolished was "soul destroying"

Watching her house being destroyed with her head in her hands, she said: "We've got some very happy memories there because it's got lovely energy to it, lovely atmosphere."

The demolition work is taking place on the north side of Hemsby gap in the direction of Winterton-on-Sea. The gap is a break in the dunes used by the lifeboat crew to access the beach.

Ms Withey said she felt "very sad" about the situation

Mary Withey was not there to witness her home being demolished on Sunday morning.

She said on Saturday that she and her partner "had got what we can" before the teams moved in.

"I'm not OK with it, it's been my home, I don't want to move... it's very sad," said Ms Withey, who lived in her house for four years.

Rob Eastaff, head of demolition, said other properties were at risk

Now all three homes have been demolished, a clean-up operation will take place on Monday.

All the materials will be taken to recycling centres, Rob Eastaff, head of demolition at the site, said.

The 50-year-old said it was "not pleasant" demolishing the homes, especially because he remembered going over the dunes to get to the beach as a 10-year-old boy.

He said to see the erosion that had happened over the past 40 years was a "terrible" thing.

Other properties are currently at risk, "but at the moment we are only engaged in these three", he added.

The two homes taken down on Sunday were on the eroded dunes on the north side of the gap

Lance Martin's property on the south side of the gap is one of those still at risk.

Mr Martin, who has lived there for almost six years, rebuilt what he described as his "dream home" after dragging it back further in-land.

After this weekend, however, he said there was less than 1m left at the back of his house.

He had hoped to move it again but there was uncertainty over whether his home could be saved.

Lance Martin has already moved his home further in-land

Mr Martin's property is teetering on the cliff edge

Jane Beck, head of property and asset management at Great Yarmouth Borough Council, said it was "extremely sad" for those involved.

"We're trying to do everything we possibly can to help them through that process," Ms Beck said.

The beach and surrounding area at Hemsby should be avoided, she added, and she urged people to stay away for their own safety.

The homes are being demolished before they fall into the sea

The only access road to properties on the Marrams has also been cordoned off and is expected to collapse.

Daniel Hurd, coxswain with the Hemsby lifeboat crew, said measures should have been put in place earlier

Great Yarmouth Borough Council's chief executive, Sheila Oxtoby, said the authority was looking to bring some rock on to the beach to protect the road access to a number of other properties as a "temporary solution".

It is understood 1,900 tonnes of granite are due to arrive on Wednesday.

Hemsby Lifeboat coxswain Daniel Hurd, however, said the current situation could have been resolved earlier.

He said: "I just think it's absolutely ridiculous, this has been an emergency for years and it's taken this weekend for them to see it's an emergency to then get a rock berm put on the beach."

• 'My house and village are falling into the sea'

• 18th Century lighthouse reduced to rubble

• Cliff-edge properties face demolition

But the council said it was a "real minefield of making sure that what local government and the authorities do is the correct line of procedure".

Hemsby, near Great Yarmouth, is home to about 3,000 people and was once home to a Pontins holiday camp.

Seven bungalows along The Marrams had to be demolished when sandy cliffs washed away in March 2018 and, in December 2013, "the worst storm surge in 60 years", destroyed seven homes.