August 2020 storms test new Dawlish sea wall
New wall tested by August storms
The high waves of Storm Ellen and Storm Francis tested the new Dawlish sea wall for two days in August 2020. The first phase of the new sea wall was opened at the end of July. This 360-metre section was designed to protect property along Marine Drive, Dawlish and the main railway line from Exeter to Plymouth. The existing Victorian 5-metre high wall has been raised to 7.5 metres at a cost of £ 11 million. Its construction includes new concrete panels on the seaward side, a wave return wall, and an improved, landscaped walkway.
Wave return and concrete panels on new Dawlish sea wall. FourRealmsPhotos
New concrete wall protects railway at Dawlish FourRealmsPhotos
Work on the new wall started in May 2019, following the Government’s decision to spend £ 80 million on improved sea defences from the Coastguards breakwater, east of Dawlish Town station to Boat Cove.
The need for more resilient defences followed the damage to the Victorian sea wall in the winter of 2014 caused by severe storms which closed the railway line for eight weeks and damaged several properties. The sea wall was breached east of Dawlish station on February 4, 2014 leaving the railway tracks hanging in mid-air. A temporary wall made of shipping containers sustained further damage on February 14 in another devastating storm. £35 million was spent repairing the damaged wall. After three feasibility studies, the plans to reconstruct the sea wall from Coastguards breakwater to the tunnel at Boat Cove were approved in 2019. The risks were further highlighted on 16 January 2020 when a huge storm wave broke over the sea wall and hit a morning train. Carriage windows were broken, a passenger was injured, and considerable disruption was caused to train services for several hours.
Phase 2 will be a 415-metre section from Coastguards to the mouth of Dawlish Water. It will connect the wall completed in Summer 2020 with the section rebuilt in 2014 and protect the station and properties nearby. As well as raising the height of the existing wall, the scheme includes the creating of a high-level promenade, a new accessible footbridge with lifts to the station platforms and landscaping work. Plans for phase 2 have been submitted and construction is due to take place during autumn 2020 and 2021.
This new section of wall will be 4 metres higher with a wave return to prevent overtopping in major storms. New concrete panels fixed to structural steel piles will be erected in front of the old stone sea wall and the area between them infilled with concrete to increase resilience.
Once the whole scheme is completed, it will help to protect the railway on this exposed section of coastline from high waves. It is hoped that the railway line will be closed less often, and normal services will resume much faster after severe storm events. The work will also preserve the coastal path and enhance the visitor experience with a new promenade, viewing platforms and landscaping.
New sea wall protecting railway and Marine Drive, Dawlish-FourRealmsPhoto