Seaford's beach - part Spain, part Bognor
ON Sunday my wife and I were on duty at the Martello Tower and the museum was busy with a mixture of both tourists and local people.
The top of the tower affords great views towards Seaford Head and along the beach towards Newhaven and I enjoy pointing out areas of interest.
I usually fool people when I ask the direction of France, as they invariably point out to sea and are surprised when I tell them that in fact where they are pointing, the next land fall would be the Dominican Republic in Central America. (If you don't believe me check your atlas!) Beyond Newhaven and Brighton, the Downs above Chichester can be seen, as can Selsey Bill and the Isle of Wight.
Another thing that fools visitors is our beach, as they are usually not aware that it is a recent addition to Seaford Bay.
As a lad, the only time I came to Seaford was in bad weather. At the first sign of bad weather my Dad, who always enjoys a good storm, would bundle my brother and I into his Morris Oxford Car and bring us over to Seaford ensuring that we arrived at high tide. The scene was usually spectacular, with huge waves crashing against the sea wall and over the Esplanade.
On more than one occasion the car was rattled by shingle as the wave drenched the car – I am sure the seawater and stones didn't do the bodywork much good!
In the 1800s longer groynes were built at Brighton and the new western breakwater at Newhaven caused a halt in the progress of shingle along the coast. As a result the beach at Seaford was not replenished and began to erode, getting lower and lower.
In 1881 a sea wall was built, but the Atlantic storms meant it had to be constantly repaired.
The maintenance of these defences was abandoned during the Second World War, when the beach was covered with so much barbed wire that access was impossible.
There were severe November storms in 1944, 1956 and 1952 when the sea wall was undermined and long sections collapsed, particularly in the area at the western end of the bay. (now Bonningstedt Parade) It was only a matter of time before the wall would be breached and result in another great flood.
The Southern Water Authority took on the problem in 1981 and they commissioned a two year long survey of the bay, even installing a radar on the roof of the Martello Tower to measure the waves.
A hydrographic survey revealed that the sea in Seaford Bay was much deeper than elsewhere along the Sussex coast, which allowed larger waves to get closer to the beach.
The survey was conducted by Hydraulics Research Limited (which had been established by the government in 1947) and they built a 1:60 model of Seaford beach to test out various solutions and, as a result, three options were put forward.
Firstly, huge rock groynes could be built out into the bay to retain the shingle, secondly a series of rock islands could be built parallel to the beach to dissipate the action of the waves but it was the third option which was agreed.
This was to build one long groyne at the eastern end of the bay to contain a new false beach, which would be built up by pumping millions of litres of shingle onto a beach with a special rock foundation.
The work began in January 1987 and the transformation of the beach was dramatic. Massive granite rocks quarried in Spain, arrived at Newhaven Harbour and were bought to the bay by road.
On top of this, shingle sucked up from Ower's Bank off the coast of Bognor Regis, was deposited at a rate of one ton per second.
The work was completed on time and just in time too! Just two weeks after completion, on October 16, 1987 the Great Hurricane struck and the new beach surely saved the town from disaster.
It is interesting to read some of the information which was given by the contractors when they were bidding for the work. It was suggested that the beach would be 'maintenance free' and loved by residents and especially children.
I am not sure that this is the case as every January huge diggers and bulldozers have to relocate the shingle at a cost of millions of pounds and some residents, particularly the elderly complain that the beach is too steep for them to reach the shoreline.
The 'new' beach however has undoubtedly saved the town from storm damage and as a result new developments have been built along the seaside where previously they would have been too vulnerable to the elements.
Visit the Martello Tower where the best view of the beach can be seen from the roof and make up your own mind about whether the beach has been worth it.
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Weather for Lewes
Friday 10 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -6 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: -5 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
