Pier washes away and railway sea wall crumbles in storm

Part of a historic pier has washed away and a sea wall next to a railway line has crumbled as Storm Ingrid lashes Devon and Cornwall.

Teignmouth mayor Cate Williams said the town had “taken a real battering” overnight into Saturday with “just wild” waves damaging part of Teignmouth Grand Pier.

A sea wall protecting the railway line at nearby Dawlish has partially collapsed and services are currently suspended between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth.

A Met Office yellow warning for rain is in place until 22:00 GMT and the Environment Agency said flood warnings were in place across the south Devon and south Cornwall coasts.

Teignmouth’s mayor said it was “sad” to see part of the resort’s pier, which opened in 1867, washed away.

“It has lost part of the pier structure itself, that has dissolved and gone away into the sea,” she said.

“It’s an old pier and it was needing some attention and I suppose age and wear and tear has taken its toll.

“It has survived many weather conditions as well as world wars. It’s sad when you look at it now to see some of it now missing.”

Dawlish also experienced a “very dramatic” night, said resident Peter Large.

He said part of the wall protecting the railway line had “just crumbled”.

“The wall is now gone at either end,” he said.

“I’m looking down at it now and there’s a strip about 80 to 90 ft long where the wall has just crumbled.

“The waves are still crashing over the railway line and over the wall.”

Martin Wrigley, Liberal Democrat MP for Newton Abbot, said the damage showed “more work” was needed to improve the railway.

“The wall beside the track at Sea Lawn Terrace has been demolished and there is literally tonnes of debris on the line, let alone the amount of water on the line,” he said.”

He said it was “a crucial lifeline for the entire south west” of England.

Elsewhere in Devon, there were reports of damaged properties in the seaside village of Torcross.

Pete Moore, director of outdoor learning centre Forest and Beach, near Torcross, said he had been eating fish and chips at Start Bay Inn when the storm arrived on Friday evening.

“You could feel the thud of the waves, it was picking up a lot,” he said.

“Not seen it so full-on like that for a while, with such strong south-east storm force winds, even though we have had storms recently. It just seemed it was up another level.”

Allie Oldham, owner of Boathouse Cottage, in Torcross, said her property was tucked into the cliff.

“I’ve just been out and many houses are devastated. I could cry,” she said.

In Exmouth, a car and truck were seen stuck in sand drifts along the seafront.

Great Western Railway (GWR) said the sea wall at Dawlish would be inspected once the storm had passed and services would be suspended until at least 18:00 GMT.

The firm advised passengers to avoid rail travel with tickets remaining valid on Sunday.

In Cornwall, the owner of a cafe housed in a converted shipping container said they had battled with stormy weather and their premises, less than a year old, had been “bashed in” by waves.

Emily Davidson, owner of Castle Beach Cafe, in Falmouth, told BBC Radio Cornwall: “We have loads of water coming in.

She said: “All of our electrics have failed. We had some glass sliding doors that have snapped.

“It’s really disheartening – you spend a lot of money to storm-proof it and then the damage still happens.”

Rail services have also been cancelled between Par and Newquay and Liskeard and Looe due to flooding.

GWR spokesman James Davis said: “There’s been a significant amount of debris that the sea has thrown onto the track that will need to be cleared before we can run trains safely.

“The line remains closed and we have a limited bus replacement service operating.

“Clearly, if the same number of people choose to travel as normal you’re going to find yourself waiting quite some time.”

Trees have also come down across the region, with one blocking both lanes of the A377 near Lapford, Devon County Council said.

Cornwall Council warned trees might still be weak or unstable following Storm Goretti.