Heavy winter storms cause defences to crumble

Balfour Beatty

The foundations of Balfour Beatty’s project to build a new sea wall at Blackpool have collapsed following recent heavy storms, the BBC has reported.

Residents reported this week that the stone foundations and concrete base of the £22m sea defences and promenade at Anchorsholme had crumbled into the sea.

The damaged wall is part of a wider £86m sea defence programme for the north-west coastal resort.

Balfour Beatty said it was working to rectify the damage.

Blackpool council’s Conservative leader Tony Williams has called for an engineer’s report into the damage.

A spokesman for Balfour Beatty said: “Progress on the Fylde Peninsular Coastal Programme has been impacted by severe coastal storms and abnormally high tides in recent months with the concrete blinding and stone foundations in part of the Anchorsholme section being temporarily affected.

“We are working to rectify the damage which has occurred as quickly as possible and we will continue to work closely with our partner on the Fylde Peninsular Partnership, Blackpool council, to complete the scheme by autumn 2015.”