Demolition of properties is underway in Hemsby

Following continued coastal erosion at Hemsby, work has begun on the demolition of five homes on the cliff edge in the village.

Great Yarmouth Borough Council has commissioned Anglian Demolition to carry out the demolition of five homes which following assessment were deemed not to be structurally sound.

This is a very complex demolition and Anglian Demolition have significant expertise in the demolition of coastal buildings and the council has taken their expert advice on how to proceed. The method statement for the demolition was agreed by both building control and representatives from Coastal Partnership East. Demolition began on Friday and is ongoing.

The council is able to demolish the unsafe properties and claim back the cost of doing this.

To aid demolition, an access ramp has been made using sand from the beach, no material from the cliff has been used for this and Anglian Demolition are taking extreme care in carrying out the work. The council has not denied there is a digger at the top of the cliff removing materials (something circulating on social media), the method of demolition has been determined by Anglian Demolition.

The decision to demolish the buildings this weekend was taken as there was a risk that the buildings could have fallen onto the beach due to the imminent risk of the cliff collapsing further. Should the properties fall onto the beach, the owners would then be responsible for removing the materials and also any environmental impact. The council have sought to avoid this situation by removing the properties with minimal disruption.

All residents who were living in these properties as a permanent home have been found alternative temporary accommodation. Officers have worked hard to secure the best accommodation taking into account the needs and wishes of individuals. However, there is a long waiting list of people in need of accommodation and the needs of those in Hemsby need to be considered alongside the level of homelessness presentations that we are seeing across the borough for many different reasons.