Fourteen clifftop homes facing 'imminent collapse'

Residents of more than a dozen clifftop properties have been told to get out immediately because their homes are at risk of "imminent" collapse.

Glenda Dennington, 80, and her husband are among those who have been told by Great Yarmouth Borough Council to leave their homes in Hemsby, Norfolk, after recent bad weather caused more than 10m (32ft) of the cliff to fall away.

"We moved here 14 years ago. This was going to be our final destination and now we don't know where we are going to be next week," she told the BBC.

The council has told people in 14 properties that there is a high risk of further collapses overnight on Thursday and over the weekend.

It is offering temporary accommodation and support, with housing staff based in the village to provide advice and assistance.

"Our focus is on supporting residents through what we recognise is a deeply upsetting and traumatic situation," it added.

"With more than 10m of land lost to erosion in recent bad weather and the risk of further substantial damage from Storm Goretti later this week, a number of properties at Hemsby face imminent collapse on to the beach.

"As the coastal management authority, Great Yarmouth Borough Council has written and is speaking to the owners of 14 properties on the Marrams and Fakes Road to advise them of the options available and explain that safe demolition needs to be carried out."

Dennington and her husband, who is recovering from a hip operation on Sunday, are in desperate need of ground floor accommodation to rent for them and their dog.

"Because he's not been well for weeks, we've done nothing to clear our stuff," she said.

"We've managed today to get a place for three days, because [the council] don't want us in here tonight.

"I think we're about 6m away [from the cliff edge] now."

She admitted she was yet to sign the form to officially hand over her property to the council to be demolished, describing it as a "dilemma".

Years of meetings about the constant threat of erosion – and talk of multi-million-pound sea defences that have not materialised -– have left her, like many others in the village, frustrated about how they have got to this point.

Before the latest announcement, more than 36 homes had been lost to the sea or demolished in the village since 2013 – including eight during December and early January.

"I think we've been sold down the river, I think we've been played," she said.

Asked how she felt about her own situation, she became tearful.

"I'm devastated, I haven't slept," she said.

"I kept trying to go to bed in the night and my head's spinning round thinking about what we've got to move."

Sinead Connell, 28, and her partner have begun to move out of the chalet they have lived in since 2022 following a "big community turnout" on Wednesday.

They were still attempting to arrange temporary accommodation when they spoke to the BBC on Thursday, having slept in their car overnight.

"We had a letter yesterday saying they didn't want us in the house for Thursday night because of a storm, and [we] need to go, get packed and go," she said.

"Obviously, people living along here keep an eye on erosion and maybe start packing up, but some don't have a car or money for storage, so they haven't been able to do that.

"It's daunting and it's sad... I'm quite overwhelmed and don't really know what I'm doing."

Cliff Williams, 86, said he and his late wife barely had a view of the sea when they bought their home in Hemsby 25 years ago.

He does not need to immediately move out but he has been given an advisory about the ongoing situation. He estimates his home is 50m (about 160ft) from the edge.

"When I first bought it, she said 'You realise it may not be there in 40 years' time', and I said 'Neither will I'.

"But now, 25 years [later, they are] knocking at my door.

"I remember in 2018 they were taking houses down, and I thought 'What a shame, [that's] somebody's house'. I never thought it would come to this."

The council said the village hall would be open as a "warm hub" on Thursday night.

It urged people to stay well clear of the dunes, follow signs and be aware that some parts of the beach might be closed.

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