Exmouth flood defences deployed

£12 million scheme used for first time

New tidal defence gates have been used for the first time in Exmouth as Storm Eunice batters the coast.

All of the Morton Crescent’s flood gates, as well as Mamhead Slipway and the gate by the Clock Tower, were closed on Thursday 17 February as the town braced itself for the storm.

A spokesperson for East Devon District Council, which operates the defences, said: “Improved road drainage should mean the other road gates will not need to be closed, but we are advising people to keep away from the seafront during the storm.”

The £12 million Exmouth flood defence scheme was completed last year with the aim of reducing flooding from a 1-in-25-year risk (a four per cent chance of flooding in any year) to a 1-in-200-year (a 0.5 per cent chance).

It reduces the risk of tidal flooding to more than 1,400 residential and 400 commercial properties.

A Met Office red weather warning was in place for Storm Eunice which as of late Friday morning [February 18] had left nearly 24,000 homes in Devon without power.

The RNLI warned people to be careful at the coast where winds were expected to hit up to 100 miles per hour.

Devon County Council is advising people to only travel if absolutely necessary and teams of tree surgeons are on stand-by to clear any fallen trees on the county’s roads.

The attached video shows the waves in Exmouth on Friday morning.