Photographer captures island cliff fall aftermath

A photographer has captured the aftermath of a cliff collapse, which she said appeared to have blocked access to "an iconic cave".

Siena Anderson, a professional photographer on the Isle of Wight, said she heard about the cliff fall at Freshwater Bay on social media on Thursday morning.

She said she was "quite confident" the cave's entrance had been blocked by fallen debris and rocks.

Isle of Wight Council said it would assess whether the cliff fall impacted the beach and advised people to "stay away from cliff edges and walking directly under a cliff line".

"It would appear that the fall has blocked the two entrances to the cave," said Anderson.

The photographer said it was "quite an iconic cave for a lot of the photographers on the island", adding that there were some "incredible photos" of the Milky Way taken from inside looking outwards.

"I think once we get some high tides and some storm surges, I'm hoping it will actually clear the entrance and there is no damage to the actual cave," she said.

"There are some significant cracks along the footpath, so it looks like there could potentially be further falls," Anderson added. "It looks like it's incredibly unstable."

She said the area was "quite unique" and "popular with kayaking, surfing, people that want to explore".

The Isle of Wight Council said it had been made aware of a cliff fall and "will assess if it has any impact on the beach".

"We would ask people to remember that cliff falls can occur at any time and it is advisable to stay away from cliff edges and walking directly under a cliff line," it added.

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