A seawall that partially collapsed during storms in Ventnor, revealing a large void, has been temporarily stabilised — though the revetment is not likely to reopen to the public until the end of next winter.
Specially engineered rock bags have been used to fill the hole which opened up along Eastern Cliffs Esplanade last November.
With the revetment now stabilised, the Isle of Wight Council's next priority is to make urgent repairs to maintain the seawall and restore the esplanade to prevent further damage.
The extent of that damage has been revealed in new drone footage which has given engineers an invaluable opportunity to examine the defences at close quarters.
The apron is almost 60 years old and not easily accessible.
The video shows severely corroded steel sheet piles, punctured with large holes and extensive voiding, allowing the tide to undermine the revetment that usually sees hundreds of people walking, cycling and running along it every day.
The council is set to carry out further inspections and surveys to obtain vital information to help develop the next phase of works.
Speaking at a residents' meeting held in Ventnor last week, Natasha Dix, the council's strategic manager for the environment, stressed just how constrained the engineers will be by the amount of voiding under the apron of the revetment.
They will begin the works at the western end of the seawall failure (by the skatepark) and complete each section individually before moving further east.
She said:
"Our investigations have shown that the damage is extensive to this structure that was built in 1966.
"The seawall here was nearing the end of its life which has been recognised in the development of long-term projects with the Environment Agency to construct new and repair costal defences across the Ventnor frontage.
"Over the next year the community will see the current works continue to fill the voids under this structure and close off the holes from the sea.
"We hope that we can reopen the revetment to vehicles and pedestrians following this phase of works, but we do ask everyone to respect the construction site fencing in the mean time and not attempt to enter this dangerous area."
A section of the eastern cliffs revetment was closed in November 2022 after a site inspection following stormy weather revealed a large void and cracking to part of the coastal defences.
The council worked swiftly with expert engineering firms to prioritise protecting an exposed sewer, preventing the reactivation of a landslide and safeguarding the local community.
Daily monitoring continues to take place with the council working in collaboration with its construction contractors, the Environment Agency and Southern Water, as well as consulting with the Marine Conservation Society, Natural England, the Marine Management Organisation and Ventnor Town Council.
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